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COMMERCIAL VIOLET CULTURE, 



I -i. 



COMMERCIAL 



VIOLET CULTURE, 



A Treatise on the Growing and Marketings 
of Violets for Profit* 



BY 

B. T* GALLOWAY, 

Chief of the Bureau of Plant Industry, United States 
Departnieni* >d Agriculture. 



1^ «^ ^* 



SECOND EDITION, REVISED. 



c^* j^W ^'* 



NEW YORK. 

A. T. DE LA MARE PTG. & PUB. CO. Ltd. 

J903. 



THE LIBRARY OF 
CONGRES'S, 

Tw« Copies Recsivfld 

JUL 22 1903 

U Copyright £ntry 

8S ] ^ XXo. No. 
lylS I 



a 



Copyright. 

Entered According to Act of Congress 

in the Years 1899 and 1903 

By A. T. De La Mare Printing and Publishing Co. Ltd 

New York. 



All Eights Reserved. 



PREFACE. 



Violet growing as a business iias not received 
the attention given to some other crops. This is 
probably due to the^ fact, that the violet as generally- 
grown is less profitable than the rose, carnation, or 
even the chrysanthemum. More people have 
embarked in this business and failed than is the 
case with any other crop, and for this reason we 
believe that it is one of the most promising fields for 
the young, energetic, and intelligent man to enter. 
Whoever enters it, however, must recognize at the 
start that there are many difficulties, and that to 
be successful means much labor, patience and 
determination to overcome all obstacles. The 
knowledge necessary to succeed can come only 
through experience. Reading will help, but with- 
out the ability to apply what is learned by reading 
little progress can be made. We have gone over 
this ground pretty thoroughly, and in looking back 
can see that our experience in many cases was 
dearly bought. To save others from making mis- 
takes that fell to our lot we have in some instances 
made statements which might be considered as 
dogmatic. We have done this for the reason that 
we were many times led away by general state- 



ments, which, had they been specific, would have 
saved us much time and money. We have endeav- 
ored to give every necessary detail for handling 
the soil, erection of houses and frames, the manage- 
ment of the plants, and the marketing of the flowers, 
and finally we have shown what it costs to grow a 
violet plant, what such a plant under fair conditions 
should yield, and what in our experience may be 
looked upon as a fair profit. 

From the facts given it will be seen that no big 
fortunes are to be made in violet growing ; but if a 
man loves Nature and that quiet and peace which 
work with her should always bring, there is a 
chance here to open her doors. Thus a love for all 
that is good and beautiful may be cultivated and a 
respectable living made at the same time. 

I wish to express my thanks to Mr. P. H. 
Dorsett, who shared with me all the trials and 
vexations which fall to the lot of beginners in this 
work. He is now a successful grower, and many 
of the illustrations given are from his houses. 

B. T. Galloway. 
Washington, D. C, 

July ist, 1899. 



PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION, 



Since the first edition of this little work was 
written, four years ago, there have been some 
changes in the methods of growing violets for 
market. The writer has seen a number of formerly 
successful growers go out of the business and others 
without any previous experience succeed astonish- 
ingly. This leads us to repeat what was stated in 
our first preface, namely, that because so many 
people fail with this crop we believe it is one of the 
most promising for the intelligent and energetic 
man to take up. In this edition we have made 
certain changes which experience has taught us, 
and offer it with thanks for the kind reception given 
the first work. Figures 60, 62, 64 and 66 are from 
Bull. 27, Division of Entomology, U. S. Department 
of Agriculture, and we are indebted to Dr. L. O. 
Howard, chief of the division, for the electrotypes. 

B. T. Galloway. 

Washington, D. C, 

May ist, 1903. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Page 

Introduction 17 

Single Varieties 17 

Russian Violet 17 

Welsiana 17 

Luxonne 18 

California, or Madame E. Arene 18 

Princess of Wales, or Princesse de Galles 18 

La France 18 

Dorsett 19 

Double Varieties 19 

Neapolitan 19 

Lady Hume Campbell 2.2 

Marie Louise 22 

Farquhar and Imperial 22 

Origin and Introduction of Varieties 23 

Culture, Past and Present 28 

CHAPTER II. 

The Soil 33 

CHAPTER III. 

Construction of Houses and Frames 46 

Construction of Houses 46 

Construction of Frames 83 

CHAPTER IV. 

Water Supply 92 



CHAPTER V. 

Page 
Propagating, Selecting, Planting, Cleaning, Water- 
ing, etc 96 

Propagating 96 

Selection of Stock for Vigor and Productiveness.. 112 

Planting , 120 

Cleaning, Watering, Syringing, Mulching, and 

Feeding 127 

CHAPTER VL 
Temperature Conditions and Ventilation 134 

CHAPTER Vn. 

Handling and Marketing the Crop 144 

CHAPTER VHI. 
Diseases and Insect Enemies 162 

Diseases and their Treatment 162 

Spot, or Spot Disease 165 

Wilt, or Stem Rot 174 

Nanism, or Stuntedness 178 

Scald, or Edge Burn 182 

Oedema, or Wart Disease 186 

Crown Rot 188 

Root Galls 191 

Bud Nematodes 194 

Insects and Other Pests 196 

Red Spider 196 

Green and Brown Aphides 205 

Cut Worms 216 

Sawfly 218 

Gallfly Maggots 219 

Phlyctoenia rubigalis 223 

CHAPTER IX. 
Cost of Production and Profits 225 

CHAPTER X. 
Violet Growing for Beginners 234 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Page 

Frontispiece. 

1. Dorsett Single Violet 20 

2. Dorsett Single Violet Bunched 21 

3. Princess of Wales Single Violet 24 

4. Marie Louise Double Violet 26 

5. Characteristic Growth of California and Marie 

Louise Compared 27 

6. Mixing Soil. Spreading Manure in Layers Be- 

tween the Soil 39 

7. Mixing Soil. Breaking and Pulverizing the Sod 

Preparatory to Putting it Down with Layers of 
Manure 40 

8. Sash House with Sash Off 47 

9. House Twelve Feet Wide, Six Feet to Ridge; 

Side Ventilators of Glass 48 

10. Type of Even-Span House, Twelve Feet Wide, 

Showing Method of Running Heating Pipes 
and Constructing Beds 49 

11. Type of Even-Span House, Twelve Feet Wide, 

with Two Deep Walks, Showing Heating 
Pipes and Method of Constructing Beds, 
Roofs, and Ends 51 

12. Shed at North End of Houses, Showing Method of 

Construction 52 

13. Interior of Shed Shown in Fig. 12 53 

14. Roofs of Twelve-Foot Houses, Showing Method 

of Construction and of Attaching Ventilators. . 54 

15. A Twelve-Foot House, Showing Method of Con- 

structing and Attaching Side Ventilators 57 

16. Fastening Pipes to Posts by Tin Clips 61 

17. Fastening Pipes to Posts by Bent- Wire Nails.... .61 



Page 
i8. Interior of Twelve-Foot House, Showing Method 

of Constructing South End and Door 62 

19. Interior of House, Showing Method of Connecting 

Flow Pipe with Four Returns 63 

20. Ridge and Furrow House Construction. Method 

of Making Gutter and Attaching Sash Bar. ... 64 

21. Interior Construction. Method of Connecting Re- 

turns at North End of House 65 

22. Construction of Single House. Method of Making 

Gutter, Attaching Sash Bar, and Fitting Side 
Ventilators 66 

23. Method of Splicing Ridge 68 

24. House Twenty-four Feet Wide 69 

25. Constructing House Twenty-four Feet Wide; 

Second Step, Making Beds and Walks 70 

26. Constructing House Twenty-four Feet Wide; 

Third Step, Running Gutters and Notching 
Plate Around Posts 71 

27. Construction. Putting Up the Roof 77 

28. Temporary House 80 

29. Simple Cold Frame 82 

30. Violets in Frame, Covered with Lath Screen 84 

31. Violets in Heated Frames, Shaded by Rough 

Boards 86 

32. Violets in Heated Frames. Summer Shading by 

Boards 88 

33. Cuttings with Hard, Wiry Roots, from Divided 

Crowns 97 

34. Various Kinds of Cuttings from a Divided Crown. 98 

35. Common Form of Cuttings from Divided Crown. 100 

36. Lath Box, or Flat, for Rooted Cuttings 102 

37. Sand-Rooted Cuttings, Ready to Plant in Flats 

Filled with Soil 106 

38. Sand-Rooted Cuttings, Ideal Type, Ready to Put 

in Soil 108 



Page 

39. Pedigree Plant, with Tag Showing Dates of Pick- 

ing and Yield of Flowers 114 

40. Bed of Pedigree Plants 116 

41. Violet Culture Under Lath Sheds in California.. 124 

42. Field Culture of Violets in Virginia 126 

43. Violets Bunched for Philadelphia Market, Some 

of the Flowers Projecting from the Bunch. . . . 146 

44. Violets bunched for Washington Market, Using 

Princess of Wales Leaves 148 

45. Picking Violets 154 

46. Leaves of California Violet Wired Together for 

Bunching Flowers 156 

47. Leatherette Shipping Box, Open 158 

48. Shipping Box, Showing Wire Screen for Holding 

Bunches 159 

49. Shipping Box, Closed and Strapped 160 

50. Spot Disease. Early Effects on Foliage 166 

51. Spot Disease on Hardy English Violets 168 

52. Spot Disease Artificially Produced 170 

53. Rooted Campbell Cuttings, Showing Effects of 

Thielavia on the Roots 175 

54. Plants Stunted by Strong Fertilizer 179 

55. Edge Burn, Brought on by Cold Soil 182 

56. Leaves and Flowers Injured by Botrytis 184 

57. Oedema, or Wart Disease 187 

58. Crown Rot 189 

59. Root Galls 192 

60. Red Spider 198 

61. Nozzle Used in Spraying Plants for the Destruc- 

tion of Red Spider 199 

62. Brown Aphis 208 

63. Method of Determining Cubic Contents of Houses. 212 

64. Sawfly ■ 220 

65. Injuries to Violet Leaves by Gallfly Maggots 221 

66. Gallfly 222 

67. Larvae and Moths of Phlyctaenia rubigalis 223 



Commercial Violet Culture. 



CHAPTER I. 



INTRODUCTION. 

The sweet violet, Viola odor at a, from which 
our cultivated forms have doubtless arisen, is widely 
distributed over Europe and Asia, but is not found 
native in America. The violet has been cultivated 
from remote times, first probably as a medicinal 
plant, but later to satisfy a love for the beautiful. 
Following are some of the more important forms 
now grown : 

SINGLE VARIETIES. 

Russian Violet* Very hardy and free flower- 
ing; flowers medium violet* in color, fairly good 
size. 

Welsiana* Plant much branched ; foliage rather 
soft, light green ; flowers large, on long stalks ; color 



*In referring to the colors of violets we have used Ridgway's Nomen- 
clature of Colors, published by Little, Brown & Co., Boston. The 
principal colors are the true violet, as ^i\\ be found in Princess of 
Wales, and the various shades of mauve. Mauves are a mixture of 
white with violet. The mauves therefore may be dark or light, de- 
pending upon the amount of white present. Marie Louise is a true 
^mauve; Campbell, a light mauve. 



l8 INTRODUCTION. 

true violet ; a valuable variety, but not so amenable 
to culture as some others. 

Luxonne* A valuable variety, with large 
flowers of a dark violet color; foliage stronger in 
texture and of a richer green than the ordinary 
Russian violet ; flowers from September to spring. 

California, or Madame £♦ Arene* We use the 

name California because it has become so well es- 
tablished that it is not practicable at this time to 
change it. This violet is unquestionably one of the 
most valuable of the single sorts. The plant grows 
like a weed and flowers pretty regularly throughout 
the entire winter; foliage soft and lightish green in 
color ; flowers, large, light violet in color, with stems 
sometimes eight inches to a foot in length. 

Princess of Wales, or Princesse de Galles^ All 

things considered, this is the best single violet that 
has come to our attention. The plant is very vig- 
orous, and has the compact habit of growth of the 
double sorts ; leaves dark rich green, of firm texture, 
making them very valuable for bunching; flowers 
large, of a true rich violet color, and borne on long, 
strong stems. 

La France* A fine, large, prolific violet'; flow- 
ers throughout the season, not so abundantly as Prin- 
cess of Wales, but the flowers are larger and have 
longer stems ; a valuable variety for growing in 



VARIETIES. 19 

frames or houses ; foliage not so good for bunching 
as Princess of Wales, but better than California. 

Dofsett* A very prolific violet, flowerin 
throughout the entire season, often giving two hun- 
dred and fifty to three hundred flowers per plant. 
The plant is exceedingly vigorous, and has the com- 
pact habit of the double sorts ; leaves, dark, rich 
green, firm in texture and fine for bunching; flow- 
ers, middle size, of a rich violet color, but lacking 
in odor. This violet was secured several years ago 
from Virginia by Mr. P. H. Dorsett, formerly of 
Garrett Park, Maryland, under the name of Prin- 
cess of Wales, which it only slightly resembles. It 
is a most valuable sort for growing for flowers or 
foliage, and on account of its ease of propagation 
and vigor is quite profitable. (See Figs, i and 2.) 

There are single violets white, yellow, and pink 
in color, but it is not necessary to give any details 
in regard to them, for the reason that there is prac- 
tically no commercial demand for them. 

DOUBLE VARIETIES. 

Neopolitan* One of the oldest of the double 
sorts, and doubtless the parent of a number of our 
most valuable varieties ; growth compact ; leaves 
rather small ; flowers pushing up straight through 
the crown, borne on strong, straight stems; color 
very light mauve (commonly called light lavender) ; 



20 



INTRODUCTION. 




l.—Dorsett single violet. 



VARIETIES. 



21 




2. — Dorsett single violet, bunched. 



22 INTRODUCTION. 

hardy, and comparatively free flowering; blooms 
from September to spring. 

Lady Hume CampbelL More vigorous than 
the last, with larger leaves and flowers; the flowers 
push up through the crown and stand above the 
leaves on straight, strong stems ; color of the flow- 
ers, when properly grown, a mauve, several shades 
lighter than Marie Louise ; flowers freely and con- 
tinuously from September to May, and is compara- 
tively free from disease. , 

Marie Louise* The most widely cultivated vio- 
let in this country, and the one for which there is 
the greatest demand. This violet is not so vigor- 
ous as the last, and is therefore more subject to the 
attacks of a number of diseases ; the leaves are large, 
of a rich green color, but inclined to be soft ; the 
flowers push out from the sides of the crown and 
are usually found resting on the ground ; flower 
stalks not so straight as Campbell, making the flow- 
ers more diflicult to bunch ; color of flowers true 
mauve ; base of petals white, splotched with red. 
The red marks are very characteristic of this variety, 
and never occur, so far as we are aware, in any 
except closely related strains. 

Fafquhar and ImperiaL Both of these forms, 
so far as we have been able to determine, are merely 
vigorous strains of Marie Louise. 



ORIGIN AND INTRODUCTION OF VARIETIES. 23 

Of other double varieties there may be men- 
tioned Swanley White (pure white) and Madam 
Millet (pink). Both of these are occasionally 
grown, but there is no great demand for them any- 
where. 

ORIGIN AND INTRODUCTION OF VARIETIES. 

The demand for single violets in this country is 
steadily increasing, and much interest is therefore 
manifested in securing varieties suitable for forc- 
ing which will bunch well and give abundant 
odor. Owing to the increased demand for singles, 
and, furthermore, for the reason that the leaves of 
certain varieties are exceedingly useful in bunch- 
ing, it would be well for every grower to devote 
a part of his space to some vigorous kind like Prin- 
cess of Wales, La France, or the Dorsett violet. 
About eight hundred plants of any of these varieties 
will, with good cultivation, give enough leaves for 
bunching the flowers from eight thousand Campbell 
or Louise. In this way the foliage of the Campbell 
or Louise is left to support the flowers — a great ad- 
vantage, especially where it is difficult to get a vig- 
orous leaf growth on the double varieties named. 
The Princess of Wales, La France and Dorsett will, 
with even ordinary care, yield a sufficient number 
of flowers to well pay for the space devoted to them, 
so that altogether it is an advantage to have tKem. 

There has been much discussion as to the origin 



24 



INTRODUCTION. 




Princess of Wales single violet, 
one- third. 



Reduced 



ORIGIN AND INTRODUCTION OF VARIETIES. 25 

of the Marie Louise and Campbell violets. The 
Marie Louise has been known under various names 
in France and Germany for sixty or seventy years. 
It was introduced into this country in 1871 by Mr. 
John Cook, of Baltimore. Mr. Cook obtained the 
stock through Schuer, of Heidelberg, Germany, who 
advertised it as the best violet belonging to the 
Parma class. After growing it for two years Mr. 
Cook sold large quantities of his stock to Peter 
Henderson and John Henderson, of New York, and 
to Mr. Dreer, of Philadelphia. The flowers created a 
sensation, and the plants, in consequence, were in 
great demand. 

We find a record of the Lady Hume Campbell 
violet as far back as 1884 in the Gardeners' Chroni- 
cle, of London, England. It is said here that the 
variety had been seen growing in the gardens of 
Harefield Court, Rickmansworth, and that it was 
exceedingly vigorous. It was regarded as a vigorous 
strain of Neapolitan. It is stated further that the 
variety had been brought from abroad several years 
before by Lady Hume Campbell and planted in her 
gardens at Highgrove, Waltford. Soon after it was 
noticed at Lady Campbell's place by a Mr. Turner, 
who bought the stock and presumably put it on the 
market. It was imported in 1892 by Mr. H. Heub- 
ner, of Groton, Massachusetts, who obtained his 
stock from Beachy, in Devonshire, England. Mr. 
Heubner informs the writer that he imported the 



26 INTRODUCTION. 




4. — Marie Louise double violet. Reduced one-third. 



ORIGIN AND INTRODUCTION OF VARIETIES. 2/ 

so-called "De Parme" at the same time, and he con- 
siders it to be in every way identical with Campbell. 
Parme de Toulouse and Parme sans Filet, both 
grown for a number of years in France and cata- 




5. — Characteristic growth of California {single) and 
[ Marie Louise [double) compared. 



logued by Millet and others, seem to be the same 
as Campbell. It is probable, therefore, that the 
Campbell originated on the continent of Europe, that 
it was brought to England about 1879 ^^ 1880, and 



28 INTRODUCTION. 

was imported into the United States in 1892, or pos- 
sibly earlier. Be that as it may, the variety has 
made a place for itself, and is now, owing to its 
great vigor and productiveness, gradually taking the 
place of the Marie Louise. 

CULTURE, PAST AND PRESENT. 

Of the early days of violet growing in this 
country, that is, the work as it was carried on up 
to fifteen years ago, little need be said. In most 
cases the methods employed were crude when looked 
at from the present point of view, just as our meth- 
ods will, no doubt, be considered crude by those 
who follow us. The plants, for the most part, were 
grown in frames or in pots, under the mistaken 
idea that it was necessary to have them near the 
glass. Even now, despite the rapid advances made 
in greenhouse construction, it is rare to find a mod- 
ern violet establishment in the true sense of the 
word. Sash houses are still largely in vogue, and 
little resemble the compact, business-like structures 
used for carnations and roses. We are at a loss 
to account for this except on the ground that 
the plant is really one which at times will do 
fairly well under seemingly very poor treatment ; 
while again all the coaxing and luxurious surround- 
ings imaginable cannot make it thrive. It is a truth 
well established that more people go into violet grow- 
ing and fail than is the case with the growing of 



METHODS OF CULTURE. 29 

any other crop under glass. Time and time again 
we have seen men start into the business with no 
experience and nothing but the poorest kind of 
equipment, and succeed for the first two or three 
years in a truly remarkable way. Then trouble comes 
in one form or another, and in two or three years 
more the grower has passed out of the field. It 
requires about five years to definitely determine 
what a man with ordinary facilities can do in this 
matter. Of course he will have his ups and downs, 
and the temptation will be strong at times to give 
up the task and take up some other crop. Such mo- 
ments are his worst, for if he sticks to his one 
problem, and endeavors to profit by his experience, 
he will in the end succeed. 

Coming back to the question of how violets are 
grown to-day, we find that those engaged in the 
work may be divided into two groups, ( i ) extensive, 
or what may be called violet farmers, and (2) inten- 
sive, or violet growers proper. Of course, one will 
find numerous gradations, but for practical purposes 
they may be classed under the foregoing heads. Vio- 
let farming is often practiced in more or less remote 
country districts, where land and labor are cheap. 
Houses are seldom used for such work, but frames 
are resorted to, and the care of the plants is left to 
boys — sometimes colored, sometimes white — over- 
looked by the owner of the place, or perhaps by a 
foreman or two. In a number of cases this method 



30 INTRODUCTION. 

is practiced by women, and not without success. Of 
course, there are numerous places where work of 
this kind could be caried on with a fair prospect of 
success. There are many farms seventy-five, one 
hundred, and even two hundred or three hundred 
miles from our large cities which with ordinary farm 
crops barely yield a living. In such cases a young 
or middle-aged person might take up this work and 
make it more profitable than the mere growing of 
farm crops. In all such cases, however, it must be 
borne in mind that to succeed there must be work 
night and day, perhaps, for a time ; and while it 
may never be the heavy, killing labor which farm 
work is often made to be, it is ceaseless, tiresome 
toil just the same. 

The intensive grower, on the other hand, should 
endeavor to locate within easy driving distance or 
shipping distance of his principal market ; that is, 
he should, if possible, be located so that he can pick 
his flowers and have them in his dealer's hands 
within an hour, or earlier if possible. It is the sweet, 
delicious fragrance that sells this flower, and the 
moment it is picked it begins to lose this all-import- 
ant thing. Therefore endeavor to locate so that you 
are in quick reach of your principal dealer, keeping 
constantly in mind the fact that your success depends 
largely on his success. Proximity to market should 
be set down as the first requisite to success, but not 
the only one by any means. Character of the soil, 



METHODS OF CULTURE. 3 1 

and facilities for obtaining manure, water, and other 
necessities, must be considered. These factors will 
all be described in detail under their proper heads. 

Last, and most important of all, the man himself 
must be considered, or, if possible, must consider 
himself. No man can learn to grow violets from 
reading books, nor can he expect to get this knowl- 
edge from watching others. He can get help and 
suggestions, of course, but the problems themselves 
he must work out alone. There is no such thing 
as luck in growing this crop, although it often looks 
that way. A man succeeds because he has the neces- 
sary knowledge to take advantage of the little things 
and make the most of them. Another fails because 
he does not see, or fails to realize, .the importance 
of the little hourly, and we might almost say mi- 
nutely, occurring things which are necessary to 
make the plants grow and thrive. It is not sufficient 
to be able to put on water, mix soil, to fire, or to feed 
and propagate the plants properly. The man may do 
all these according to the very best practices and yet 
his plants will never grow and bloom like those of 
the man who has the intuitive knowledge to realize 
the little needs and to make the cumulative effects 
of this knowledge felt in just the right way and at 
the right time. All this is hard to put into words, 
and will not be understood at all by some readers ; 
but it is seen everywhere, from the lady who grows 
only a few house plants, but always succeeds with 



32 INTRODUCTION. 

them, to the grower with his acres of glass in which 
every plant seems to spring into vigorous growth 
so long as his watchful eye is upon them and his 
hand is present to guide and direct the various op- 
erations. 

The successful grower, then, is horn, not made; 
for it is not a question of mechanics, but one of 
brains ; and therefore, if there is not an inherent 
love for plants — that feeling of sympathy between 
them and you — some other work would better be un- 
dertaken. With love for the work, and apprecia- 
tion of every need of the plants, success will in 
the end result, even though many difficulties in the 
way of surroundings must be overcome, 

To conclude, the whole gist of this argument is 
that surroundings, of course, count for considerable 
in such work, but more than all the rest success de- 
pends on the man himself, or rather on what he has 
in him. The man who truly succeeds in this work 
will succeed in almost any business, for all success 
really traces back to one thing, namely, ability to see, 
to grasp, and to utilize little things to the best advan- 
tage. Look after these, and the big ones will look 
out for themselves. 



PHYSICAL PRpPERTIES OF SOIL. 33 



CHAPTER 11. 



THE SOIL. 

The soil forms the basis for all work in plant 
growth, and it is proper, therefore, that it should be 
discussed first. Violets will grow on almost any soil, 
but to obtain the best results it is necessary to pay 
attention to certain important characters of the soil, 
particularly those relating to its physical properties. 
The importance of the relation of the physical prop- 
erties of the soil, that is, texture, temperature and 
moisture, to plant growth is not fully appreciated. 
By texture is meant the character of the particles 
which make up the soil, while structure has to do 
with the arrangement of these particles and their 
relation to each other. The particles, or grains, of 
which soils are composed vary greatly in size, and 
to distinguish them they have received certain con- 
ventional names, such as clay, fine silt, silt, fine sand, 
sand, etc. The clay particles are extremely minute, 
silt grains are larger, and so on until we have coarse 
sand or gravel, with grains 1-25 to 1-12 of an inch 
in diameter. Upon the amounts of the various con- 
stituents, i. e., clay, fine silt, silt, fine sand, etc., 
depends the porosity of the soil, the readiness with 



34 SOIL. 

which the air penetrates it and water moves through 
it, its. water-holding capacity, and finally its tem- 
perature.'^' 

By varying the texture of the soil its water 
content is varied, its capacity for heat is modified, 
and so on until every important factor, including 
food in the ordinary acceptance of the word, is in- 
volved. To these variations the plant adapts itself, 
and the result may be extensive leaf development 
with few or no flowers, or vice versa, a weakened 
condition of the tissues (making the plant subject 
to the attacks of enemies, especially fungi), and so 
on through a list of other possibilities. To illustrate 
more fully, we may say that in our experience the 
Lady Hume Campbell violet seems to thrive best 
on relatively light soil, that is, a soil which contains 
a comparatively small amount of clay. The Marie 
Louise, on the other hand, does best with more clay, 
or, in other words, a heavier soil. The violet soils 
of the Poughkeepsie region contain from eight to 
fifteen per cent of clay, and it is here that the highest 
success is attained with this particular variety. In 
parts of Maryland and Virginia where the Camp- 
bell violet is grown extensively, the soils frequently 
contain six to eight per cent of clay, so that it will 
be seen that there is considerable difiference as re- 
gards the structure of the two classes of soils. It 



♦Galloway, B. T., Yearbook of the Department of Agriculture for 
1895, p. 250. 



TEXTURE. 35 

follows, of course, that where soils showing so much 
difference in structure are used, the plants in each 
case have different sets of factors to which they must 
adapt themselves, and in doing this they may be 
so modified as to materially affect the development 
of the flowers. 

Soils of both the heavy and moderately heavy 
types are found ni many places, and if they do not 
occur naturally the desired effects may be approxi- 
mated by combinations of light and heavy soils. 
We have never found it satisfactory to lighten heavy 
soil by mixing in sand alone. This takes away the 
hfe of the soil, and plants never succeed so well in 
it as when the desired conditions are produced by 
mixing a heavy and a light soil. For example, we 
may have in one part of a field a soil containing 
fifteen to twenty per cent, of clay, and in another one 
containing four or five per cent. By mixing these 
two soils in equal proportion a combination is ef- 
fected which, other conditions being equal, will prove 
better for violets than either soil used alone. 

Of course, it must be remembered that the con- 
ditions for plants under glass are different from 
those out-of-doors. Outside, the plant has to take 
what it can get in the way of water, air, and other 
important conditions for growth, while inside these 
are, in a measure, made to order by the grower him- 
self. It follows, therefore, that even where the soil 
is not what it should be, the grower has it within 



36 SOIL. 

his power, to a large extent, to overcome the diffi- 
culties by a proper manipulation of the surround- 
ings. 

This question of the structure of the soil and 
its relation to plant growth is a rather difficult one 
to explain in words. The practical grower learns 
by experience how to judge a soil largely by its 
appearance and its "feel" when taken in the hand. 
The facts given in regard to the effects of structure 
of soil on plant growth, therefore, help a novice by 
acquainting him with matters he ought to know, but 
they will not show him what he can do, for expe- 
rience alone can teach him this. Any soil that will 
grow a good crop of potatoes will, with proper 
manuring, grow good violets. This means that the 
soil should be moderately heavy loam, that it should 
not pack or puddle readily, and that it should con- 
tain plenty of fibrous material, which can be ob- 
tained by using good turf or sod. 

We prefer in all cases to use good sod or turf, 
cutting this not more than three or four inches thick. 
Where land is plentiful, that is, where the grower 
has several acres at his disposal, it will be best to 
keep part of'it constantly in grass. Blue grass, white 
clover and redtop make a good mixture. For every 
bushel of blue grass seed use one quart of white 
clover and one-third bushel of redtop. Coarse 
grasses, like orchard grass and timothy, should be 
avoided, as the stems and heavy roots are sources 



HANDLING. 37 

of annoyance in handling the soil. Where one has 
land that can be spared he should allow for every 
thousand plants not less than one-twentieth of an 
acre in grass upon which he can depend for soil. 
The soil, after being used, can be hauled out, and 
after being spread on the ground be reseeded, and 
in six or eight years will probably be as good as new. 
In the majority of cases it is necessary to purchase 
the soil, and this is usually done through contract- 
ors, and sometimes from farmers who have the sod 
to spare. It is customary to pay from seventy-five 
cents to one dollar per cubic yard for good sod cut 
three or four inches thick and delivered on the place. 
A cubic yard contains twenty-seven cubic feet; that 
is, a pile one foot high, three feet wide and nine feet 
long. More often, the soil is bought merely by the 
"load," a load being usually about a yard — some- 
times a little more, sometimes less. Seventy-five 
cents to one dollar per load is the price usually paid 
fcr soil. 

Some prefer to stack the soil, that is, to cut it 
and pile it in a heap in the early fall ; but this is not 
always practicable ; hence very often the work is left 
till spring. On the whole we can see no advantage 
ni the early fall stacking, unless it can be done dur- 
ing a time when work is not pressing. Where prac- 
ticable, our preference is to cut the sod in the fall 
and allow it to stand in the field unpiled until it 
has been frozen hard three or four times. In this 



38 SOIL. 

way grubs, nematodes, and the larvae of many insects 
are killed, and at the same time benefit is derived 
from the effects of the frost on the mechanical and 
chemical condition of the soil. Before hard winter 
weather sets in the soil should be either hauled close 
to the greenhouse and piled, or else made into a heap 
where it stands. In sections where the soil is not 
from limestone formation, fresh slacked lime should 
be added to it when it is being put into the heap, or 
directly after cutting. Lime should be added at the 
rate of about two-thirds of a bushel for each one 
thousand square feet cut. In stacking the soil we 
prefer to make a heap about four feet high, twenty 
to twenty-five feet wide, and of any length desired. 
At this time the manure, which should have been 
previously procured and put into good condition, is 
to be added to the soil. As a rule, one part of ma- 
nure to four parts of soil will make a combination 
sufficiently rich for any purpose. This is assuming, 
of course, that the manure is well rotted and free 
from light chaff and straw. Well-rotted cow ma- 
nure is preferable, if it can be obtained ; but if not, 
well-rotted and carefully handled horse manure will 
answer equally as well. Avoid all experimenting 
with chemical fertilisers. They are well enough in 
their place, and in the hands of one who has had 
experience no harm will result from the use of a 
little pure, ground, undissolved bone, but it must be 
pure, and applied at the rate of not more than one- 



MIXING. 



39 



half bushel for each one thousand plants. The bone 
should be mixed with the soil when the heap is being 
made. When a cart and horse are at hand we pre- 




6. — Mixing- soil. 



Spreading- manure in layers between 
the soil. 



fer to use them in making the heap. Four loads of 
soil, each a cubic yard, are hauled and spread, and 
then a load of manure is added and spread over the 



40 



SOIL. 



soil. This is continued until the first layer of the 
heap is of the desired width and length, when a 
second layer is formed in the same way. After fin- 




7. — Mixing soil Breaking and pulverizing the sod pre- 
paratory to putting it doMrn with layers of manure. 

ishing each layer the bone meal may be sown thinly 
over the surface. Put it on about as thick as is done 
in sanding or sawdusting a floor. Working in this 



MIXING. 41 

way, two active men can put into a heap forty to 
tifty yards of soil a day, or a sufficient quantity for 
four thousand to five thousand plants, figuring that 
the beds contain six inches of fresh made soil, and 
that the manure and turf are one hundred to two 
hundred feet apart. It is seen, therefore, that each 
cubic yard of the mixture is sufficient for one hun- 
dred plants, allowing a depth of six inches for the 
beds. 

When soil is purchased, or even when it is ob- 
tamed from one's own place, it is never exactly alike 
a^iy two years. For this reason it is a good plan to 
experiment a little before the general mixing is com- 
menced. It takes very little time to make up sev- 
eral lots of soil in different proportions, using a 
water pail to make the measurements. For instance, 
we have soil from two localities, one of which is 
moderately heavy and the other light, and also well- 
rotted manure, which we make up in the following 
combinations : 

(i) Light soil, one part. 

Heavy soil, three parts. 

Manure, one part. 

(2) Light soil, two parts. 
Heavy soil, two parts. 
Manure, one part. 

(3) Light soil, two parts. 
Heavy soil, three parts. 
Manure, one part. 

(4) Heavy soil, four parts. 
Manure, one part. 



42 SOIL. 

By using a pail, only small quantities of soil and 
manure are needed, but there will be sufficient ma- 
terial in each case after a thorough mixing to tell 
what the combinations look and feel like. It is al- 
ways best to allow the heaps to stand a week or two, 
for they often change their texture on standing, 
especially when lime is used. With a Httle practice 
one can soon determine in his own mind what com- 
binations suit him best, and then he will at least 
have a rational basis to work upon. 

Right here we may utter a word of warning 
against the growing practice of allowing the ex- 
perimenting mania to get the better of judgment. 
Some individuals are over-inquiring, and for this 
reason the temptation is to experiment continually, 
with the result that nothing succeeds, for the sim- 
ple reason that one thing is not tried long enough 
to find out its real value. We find a grower trying 
first this, then that fertilizer or method, with the 
result that by and by he gives up in disgust, and 
says that his soil or his section is not suited to the 
crop he is attempting to grow. If he could only 
be brought to a realization of the fact that the trouble 
is not wholly in the soil or surroundings, but is 
partly in himself, he would soon be on the road to 
success. We have known men to spend years of 
work in experimenting one way or another, and 
at the end o'f that time they would be little wiser 
than when they commence"d. All this time the plants 



MIXING. 43 

have been doctored with insecticides and fungicides, 
fed on many kinds of food, and in short made to run 
the whole gamut of crank and quack notions adver- 
tised from time to time. What is needed here is a 
mind cure for the individual and less doctoring for 
the plants. Experiment, of course, but do not be 
led away by it, and do not allow every new idea 
or suggestion to take you from the main purpose 
or to bias your judgment. 

To return from our digression, the soil, when 
heaped, should be protected by rough boards or by 
some other means from rains. Much benefit will 
result if the soil is turned two or three times before 
it is taken into the houses. Many omit this, but 
we are convinced that it pays to turn it, as this im- 
proves its condition in many ways. The cost will 
not exceed fifty cents per thousand plants for each 
turning. Reference has been made to the quantity ot 
soil used, but it is desirable to enter somewhat into 
detail upon this point. We aim to put in six inches 
of fresh soil every year. Plants may do well on less 
or even on the soil that has been used once, but 
the grower who is in the business for all there is 
to be made out of it cannot afford to run any risks ; 
hence he should calculate on not less than six inches 
of new soil each year. To determine then how much 
soil is necessary, merely multiply the length of each 
bed in feet and inches by the width, and multiply 
this by one-half. This will give the number of cubic 



44 SOIL. 

feet, and as there are twenty-seven cubic feet in a 
cubic yard, the number of cubic feet, divided by 
twenty-seven, will give the number of cubic yards. 
For example, it has been our practice to have our 
beds numbered (these numbers are held constant 
from year to year) as follows : 

Bed No. I. 75x6 feet=45o square feet x Yt. foot=225 

cubic feet, or practically 8 cubic yards. 
Bed No. 2. 125x5 feet=625 square feet x 3^ foot=3i2 

cubic feet-^27=ii.4 yards. 

All the beds being numbered in this way it is an 
easy matter to tell just how much soil will be needed. 
Of course in considering the bulk as a whole the 
manure must be counted in, that is, if a total of one 
hundred yards of prepared soil is needed the manure 
will form one-fourth of this, or twenty-five yards. 
It will be necessary therefore to purchase seventy- 
five yards of soil proper, and twenty-five yards of 
manure for the mixture. The cost of manure will, 
of course, depend on many circumstances, but in the 
vicinity of cities it can seldom be bought for less 
than seventy five cents a cubic yard, or about two 
dollars and a half for a two-horse wagon load. 

The foregoing statements in regard to soil, 
mixing, etc., are based upon the supposition that 
the grower is near a city, where land is high, and 
that his work is on an intensive plan, and further, 
that the plants are grown where they stand and not 
planted in the field and then moved in. No man 



PROPER SOIL CONDITIONS 45 

zvho is in the business to compete zvith the best 
growers can afford to run the risk of growing his 
plants in the field and moving them into houses. 
From the time the cutting is made until the old plant 
is thrown away the work is or should be entirely 
under glass. 

Where violet farming is practiced, i. e., where 
land is plentiful and the crop is grown in frames, 
it is customary in some sections to merely plow up 
a fresh piece of sod each year or every two or three 
years and move the frames. We do not recommend 
this practice and believe that it pays to bring the 
soil into heaps and mix it as described even if it is 
to be used in frames. The more the soil is handled 
the better, providing of course the work is not done 
when there is too much moisture present. Never 
allow a shovel to touch the soil when the latter is 
wet, for irreparable injury can be done at such a 
time. Wait until the soil is mealy and never handle 
it when it is pasty and putty-like to the touch. It 
must be remembered that the soil is not a dead, inert 
mass, but is an exceedingly complicated material — 
an active working laboratory, teeming with life and 
performing functions which we as yet but little 
understand. Fortunate is the man who knows 
enough to appreciate this fact and to let the soil 
alone when by so doing its wonderful mechanism 
is brought into play for the best use of the plants 
it sustains. 



46 HOUSES. 



CHAPTER III. 



CONSTRUCTION OF HOUSES AND FRAMES. 
CONSTRUCTION OF HOUSES. 

Probably more makeshifts in the way of houses 
for growing violets have been used in this country 
than for any other crop. The evolution of this part 
of the work has been exceptionally slow, so that it 
is difficult to find at this time a thoroughly modern 
establishment in every way. Ordinary cold frames 
were first used; then in order to get at the plants 
in bad weather a pit was made so as to obtain head 
room and still utilize the sash and keep the plants 
near the glass. Gradually growers began to get 
their plants above ground and to increase the amount 
of head room and air space by raising the sash above 
the beds. Many houses are still made on this plan, 
while a comparatively few are built with stationary 
sash bars and permanent glass roof. There are no 
special advantages in making a house of sash, ex- 
cept in certain ca^es, which will be mentioned later. 
Such houses cannot be made wind or water-tight, 
and as a rule are so full of wood as to be unnecessar- 
ily dark. When it was considered necessary to take 
the glass off in summer, sashes, of course, were an 



CONSTRUCTION. 



47 




48 



HOUSES. 



important item, for they could easily be removed 
and stored until wanted in the fall. If one intends 
to make a permaiient'.hou'se wejiy all means recom- 
mend the fixed roof, with ventilators and other nec- 




9. — House twelve feet wide, six feet to ridge; side venti- 
lators of glass. This is one of a block of£ve houses, 
each seventy- hve feet long. 

essary adjuncts arranged as we shall now proceed to 
describe. 



CONSTRUCTION 




50 HOUSES. 

All things considered, our preference is for 
even-span houses running north and south. The 
violet does not thrive well under glaring sunlight. 
It needs light, but this should be softened and dif- 
fused in order to insure the best results in the growth 
and the size and color of the flowers. The three- 
quarter span house facing south is apt to be too 
bright, and if heavy shading is resorted to it is ef- 
fective in bright weather, but makes it too dark 
when cloudy. Economy in space and economy in 
building, furthermore, can be attained by adopting 
the even- span north and south style of house. In 
our work we have made it a point to keep a careful 
record not only of the flowers from each kind of 
house, but from each bed in a house. These records, 
kept from year to year, furnish interesting informa- 
tion and enable one who is looking to every detail 
to make changes that will result to his advantage. 
The three-quarter span house facing south in our 
case never gave as many flowers per square foot 
of bed space by twenty to twenty-five per cent, as 
the even-span houses running north and south. 

When capital and space are limited we know 
of no better style of house than a narrow, plain, 
even span, built on the ridge and furrow plan, and 
running north and south. The length may be from 
seventy-five to one hundred and fifty feet. 

Our preference is for houses one hundred feet 
long, twelve feet wide, seven feet to the ridge from 



CONSTRUCTION. 



51 




52 



HOUSES. 



the bottom of the walk, and two feet eight inches 
high on the sides above ground level (see figure 9). 
Where the amount of ground is limited these houses 
may be built together — two, three, five, or seven, as 




12. — Shed at north end of houses, showing- method ot 
construction. Shed has g-lass root. 

the case may be — without intervening walls. At the 
north end of the houses and running the entire 
length across the ends there should be a lean-to shed 



CONSTRUCTION. 



53 



eight feet wide and provided with a glass roof slop- 
ing to the north. Against the north wall may be 
placed a propagating bed three and one-half feet 
wide, leaving four and one-half feet clear space for 




13. — Interior of shed shown in hgure 12. Propagating 
bench on the right, supply pipes {two-inch) on the 
left, shed eight feet wide. 

a walk and entrance to each house. If more than 
six houses are in the block, the boiler should be 
placed near the center in a pit dug beneath the 
shed. If necessary, of course, the entire space 



54 



HOUSES. 



beneath the shed may be devoted to coal, a work- 
shop, and perhaps a place for tools. If the number 
of houses is three or less, the boiler may be placed 
at one end of the shed in a pit, as already described. 




14. — Roofs of twelve- foot houses, showing method of con- 
struction and of attaching ventilators; one row 
of glass between the ventilators. 

The end selected should depend upon the general 
slope of the land, the object being to get the boiler 



CONSTRUCTION. 55 

at the lowest point. Following is a detailed state- 
ment in regard to the points to consider in this type 
of house: 

Length, one hundred feet, with one foot fall to carry 
off water. 

Inside width, twelve feet. 

Height to ridge from bottom of walk, seven feet. 

Height of side from top of plate to bottom of gutter, 
twenty inches (see figure 26). 

Walls below plates to be boarded up with rough lum- 
ber first, then covered with rustic siding (see 
figure 26). 

Number of walks, one in each house, placed in the 
center. 

Width of walk, fourteen inches. 

Depth of walk, twelve inches. 

Number of beds, two. 

Width of each bed, five feet five inches. 

Depth of beds, twelve inches. 

Posts in outside walls, four by four inches sawed 
cedar, chestnut, or locust, set four feet apart cen- 
ter to center, and two and one-half feet in the 
ground. 

Posts in inside walls, four by four inches, set eight 
feet apart center to center, and two and one-half 
feet in the ground. 

Gutters, three piece, six inches in the clear, made of 
two-inch clear cypress (see figure 20). 

Wall plates, two by eight inch clear cypress, to be 
notched around posts. 

Gable plates for end of each house, two by eight inch 
clear cypress. 

Gable rafters, one and three-quarters by two and one- 
quarter inch clear cypress. 



56 HOUSES. 

Sash bars, clear cypress, one and one-quarter by two 

and one-half inches, with drip groove, all bars to 

extend from gutter to ridge. 
Rafters, two by four inch, clear cypress, to be set 

every sixteen feet. Rafters to take place of sash 

bar. 
Ridge (with ridge cap), two by six inches. 
Top ventilators, two by four feet, or made to cover 

three rows of glass set fifteen inches, including 

sash bars. One row of glass to be left between 

the ventilators. 
Headers to be placed under ventilator. 
Ventilators on side, two by four feet, continuous, and 

to lap on post one-half. 
Glass ten by fifteen inches, double thick, second quality, 

lapped and bedded in putty. Glass set fifteen inch 

way. 
South ends of houses glass, with exception of door, 

which should be four feet wide so as to admit a 

wheelbarrow readily. 
North ends of houses opening into shed to be made of 

tongue and groove pine, with doors the same size 

as those on south end. 
Walls of shed to be made of rustic siding nailed to two 

by four studs set eighteen inches apart. Inside of 

shed to be lined with tongue and groove yellow 

pine. 
Wall plate of shed, two by six yellow pine. 
Top plate of shed, same as wall plate. 
Doors in north wall of shed, four feet wide, opening 

opposite doors in north end of houses. 
Posts for sides of beds, two by four hemlock, set four 

feet apart, and wired to opposite posts or to stakes 

to prevent spreading. Set wires ten inches below 

top of bed. 



CONSTRUCTION. 



57 



Sides of bed, one by twelve inch hemlock boards 

nailed to outside of the two by four posts. 
Heating pipes, black wrought iron screw joints, two 



i?^:?^^^^;s^^ '^- 



~^^f<fil^r;' 





15. — A twelve- foot house, showing method oi constructing 
and attaching side ventilators. 

one and one-half inch flows for each house and ten 
one and one-quarter inch returns (five on each side 
of house) . Pipes run so that the highest point, in- 



58 HOUSES. 

eluding expansion tank, is direetly over the boiler. 

Flow and returns in all houses to have the same fall, 
i. e., about one inch for every ten feet of pipe. 

To feed five houses of the size here given (twelve by 
one hundred feet), it will be necessary to run out 
two two and one-half inch pipes from the boiler, 
allowing one pipe to feed the two houses on the 
west and one to feed the three on the east. The 
west is given the advantage on account of the 
greater exposure. 

Top ventilators operated by plain lifting rods with 
holes and pins to give a four to sixteen inch open- 
ing. 

The accompanying illustrations will make plain 
the points mentioned. 

The second type of house, which will require 
more ground and capital, is also even-span, running 
north and south, but with a space of eight feet 
between the houses. Following are the principal 
features of this style of house: 

Length of house, one hundred feet, with one foot fall 
to carry off water. 

Width of shed at north end, ten feet. 

Width of house inside, twenty-four feet. 

Height of walls from top of plate to bottom of gutter, 
twenty inches. Plate to be twelve inches above 
grade (see figure 26). 

Walls below plate to be boarded up with rough lumber 
and then covered with rustic siding (see figure 26). 

Height of house inside from top of center bed to bot- 
tom of ridge, nine feet. 

Number of walks, two. 

Width of walks, each fourteen inches. 



CONSTRUCTION. 59 

Number of beds, three. 

Width of center bed, ten feet ten mches. 

Width of side beds, each five feet five inches. 

Depth of beds, twelve inches. 

Posts in side walls, sawed cedar, chestnut, or locust, 
four by four inches, set four feet apart center to 
center and two and one-half feet in the ground. 

Gutters, three piece cypress, six inches in the clear (see 
figure 20). 

Plates, two by eight inches, clear cypress, cut to fit 
around posts and to receive bottom of ventilator. 

Gable plates at ends of house, two by eight inches clear 
cypress. 

Gable rafters, one and three-quarters by two and one- 
quarter inches clear cypress. 

Purlins, one inch black pipe, run under each slope 
five feet nine inches from ridge. 

Supports for purlins, one inch pipe, long enough to ex- 
tend through bed and into cement block in the 
ground. 

Support for ridge, one and one-quarter inch black 
pipe, placed eight feet apart and set the same as 
supports under purlins. 

Iron posts, to be attached to purlins by T's one and 
one-quarter inch through, so as to slip over pur- 
lin pipe, with one inch side to take support. 

Sash bars, clear cypress, one and one-quarter by two 
and one-half inches, with drip groove, all bars to 
extend from gutter to ridge. 

Rafters, none. 

Ridge, clear cypress, two by six inches, with ridge cap. 

Top ventilators on both sides, each ventilator two by 
four feet, or long enough to cover three sash bars 
and glass, leaving one row of glass between each 
two ventilators, headers under ventilators. 



6o HOUSES. 

Ventilators on sides, two by four feet, continuous, and 
made to lap on posts. 

Ventilator-raising apparatus for lop and sides con- 
sisting of geared wheels, shaft, arms, and rods. 

Glass, ten by fifteen inches, double thick, second qual- 
ity, lapped, and bedded in putty. 

Posts for supporting sides of beds, two by four inch 
hemlock, set four feet apart and wired to opposite 
posts to prevent bed from spreading. 

Sides of beds, one inch hemlock or cypress, nailed to 
outside of posts. 

Heating pipes, black wrought iron and screw joint, 
to be run so that the highest point is directly over 
the boiler. 

Flow pipe, two and one-half inches, to be carried 
directly under the ridge and to fall to south end 
about one inch in every ten feet. 

Returns, twelve one and one-half inch pipe, to fall one 
inch in ten feet from south to north end, two pipes 
to be carried over center bed and five along each 
wall. This will give sufficient radiating surface to 
maintain with hot water an inside temperature of 
fifty degrees F. with an outside temperature at zero 
and no wind blowing. Plugged openings should 
be left for at least four additional returns so as 
to be on the safe side. This can be done with very 
little additional expense and may be worth a good 
many dollars at some future time. 

As many houses as may be desired can be built after 
this plan, all connecting at the north end with the 
shed having a slope running to the north, the same 
as described for the first style of house. It is best 
to leave at least eight feet between each two houses 
to facilitate ventilation, the taking out of plants 



CONSTRUCTION. 



6i 



and soil, clearing off the snow from the roots, and 
other necessary work. 

So much for the main points involved in the 
construction of the two principal styles of houses. 
In the matter of heating we have considered only 
hot water, as we believe it has advantages over 
steam in growing violets. A proper boiler is of the 




16. — Fastening- pipes to 
posts by tin clips. 



17. — Fastening pipes to posts 
by bent- wire nails. 



Utmost importance — so important, in fact, that the 
most careful consideration should be given to its 
selection. N otzvithstanding all that has been writ- 
ten on- heating it is a fact that nearly every man zvho 
goes into greenhouse work is dissatisfied until he has 
spent a good deal of money and time in experiment- 
Experience obtained in this 



ing on this feature. 



62 HOUSES. 

way is sometimes dearly bought and it pays better 
to take the advice of others who have gone over the 
same ground and have reached conclusions that will 
apply to your case. 




18. — Interior of twelve-foot house, showing- method of 
constructing- south end and door. 

Boiler makers, under the stimulus of competi- 
tion, have in many cases wandered away from the 
simple principles that must be considered in making 



CONSTRUCTION. 63 

an economical, efficient apparatus. In our experi- 
ence with boilers we have never found any that 
would fill all requirements so nearly as one of sim- 



19. — Interior of house, showing- method of connecting 
tlow pipe with four returns. 

pie construction, giving the largest possible amount 
of direct heating surface, and offering the least re- 
sistance to the movement of the water, and a fire box 



64 



HOUSES. 




CONSTRUCTION. 



6s 



deep and big enough to carry a large amount of 
fuel at slow combustion. 

There is no economy in curtailing the size of 
the fire box and adding sections, which at best can 




21. — Interior construction. Method of connecting returns 
at north end of house. 

only receive the hot gases. In order to get the 
full service out of such a boiler it will be necessary 
to carry a hot fire, and as a result a large percentage 



66 



HOUSES. 







^ 



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bo +^ 

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CS CO 

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tfl 


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(fl 


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2 
o 






05 


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CONSTRUCTION. 67 

of the heat goes up the chimney, Boilers, there- 
fore, should be selected with due regard to (i) the 
amount of direct heating surface, (2) perpendicular 
circulation of the water in the boiler, (3) the capac- 
ity for fuel, and (4) conveniences in the matter of 
suitable grates, drafts, and doors. Most boilers are 
rated on the number of square feet of pipe they 
will heat. As a rule, at least twenty-five per cent, 
margin should be allowed on these figures in order 
to be on the safe side. For example, if a boiler is 
rated to heat one thousand square feet of pipe it 
should not have more than seven hundred or seven 
hundred and fifty feet put upon it. It may heat the 
thousand feet at a pinch, hut the grower wants it to 
heat the pipe at all times zmth a slow Hre that zmll 
stand without attention at least six or seven hours, 
The saddle, conical, and locomotive types of 
boilers are probably as efficient as any we now have, 
and by taking any one of the^e and fitting it up 
with the modern improvements in the way of deep 
fire box, grates, ash-pit, door and flue drafts, and 
dampers, it would, in all probability, do the work 
more economically and efficiently than a large num- 
ber of the intricate forms now on the market. There 
is the keenest competition among boiler makers, and 
as a rule, they are to be commended for the great 
energy they show in endeavoring to adapt their 
apparatus to the demands of the trade. Prices are 
so close that every additional ounce o-f iron counts, 
and for this reason it would seem to be the part 



68 



HOUSES. 




2:^ 



HEATING. 



69 



of wisdom to simplify construction as much as pos- 
sible. It is a matter of theoretical calculation to 
determine what each section will do when added 




24. — House twenty-four feet wide; posts set and shed at 
north end built £rst. 

to a boiler. In practice, however, it is frequently 
found that each section beyond reach of direct fire 
contact utterly fails to do what in theory it ought 
to accompHsh. Good boilers made by responsible 



70 



HOUSES. 



firms are within the reach of all nowadays and it 
hardly pays, therefore, to attempt to make them 
out of coils of pipe. By the time the pipe is pur- 




26. — Constructing house twenty-four feet wide; second 
step, making beds and walks. 

chased, put together, and bricked up, and the doors^ 
grates, drafts, and other necessary conveniences ob- 
tained, the cost is nearly as great as when a first- 



BOILERS. 



71 



class boiler, ready to set up and start off, is pur- 
chased. 

As to the cost of boilers, it may be said that 
for every five hundred square feet of pipe it will 




26. — Constructing house twenty- four feet wide; third step, 
running- gutters and notching plate around posts. 

cost seventy-five dollars for boiler capacity to heat 

it, or fifteen dollars for every hundred square feet 

of heating surface. Therefore, to heat a house such 

as described, namely, twelve by one hundred feet 



^2 HOUSES. 

and seven feet to ridge, the boiler would cost sev- 
enty-five dollars. For each additional house of the 
same length joined to the next without partition 
walls, an additional fifty dollars should be added 
for boiler capacity. To heat a house one hundred 
feet long and twenty-four feet wide, such as de- 
scribed as the second type, would require a boiler 
costing one hundred and twenty-five dollars. For 
each additional house separated from the other by 
an alley of eight feet, it would require seventy-five 
dollars additional for boiler capacity. When the 
amount of pipe to heat exceeds twenty-five hundred 
square feet it is best to have more than one boiler 
— in fact, it is a question whether it is not best in 
all cases to have boilers so arranged that there is 
a reserve on hand for emergencies, which may arise 
at any time. It is also a question as to whether 
it would not pay to have a night fireman in all cases 
where the number of plants exceeds ten thousand. 

This brings us to a consideration of the total 
cost of the types of houses described. Taking one 
hundred feet as the length, a house twelve feet wide 
and seven feet to the ridge, with a twenty-inch open- 
ing on sides, would cost as follows : 

40 posts for side walls, 4x4 inches, 6 or 7 

feet long, at 35 cents each $14 00 

205 lineal feet 3-piece gutter, 6 inches in 

clear, at $16.20 per 100 feet. 33 21 

1200 lineal feet of sash bars, i^ x2% inches, 

in 14 foot lengths, at $1.50 per 100 

feet 18 00 



COST OF CONSTRUCTION. 73 

225 lineal feet 2x8 inch wall plate for sides 

and ends, at $7.20 per 100 feet 16 20 

96 lineal feet 2x4 inch rafters, 14 foot 

lengths, at $4.00 per 100 feet 3 84 

64 lineal feet of gable rafters, i%x2^/4, at 

^2.^6 per 100 feet i 51 

112 lineal feet of 2x6 inch ridge, at $5.40 

per 100 feet. 605 

100 lineal feet of ridge cap, 1^/4x3^/^, at 

$2.20 per 100 feet 2.20 

20 top ventilators, each 2x4 feet, at 40 

cents each (5 cents per square foot) . . 8 00 
75 lineal feet of headers for ventilators, at 

4 cents per foot 3 40 

50 side ventilators, 2x4 feet, at 40 cents 

each 20 00 

52 hemlock posts 2x4 inches, for sides of 
beds, each post 3 feet long, at 4 cents 

each 2 08 

200 lineal feet hemlock boards, 12 x i inch, 

at $1.60 per 100 feet, for sides of beds 3 20 
600 board feet rough hemlock for walls be- 
low plate, at $1.50 per 100 9 00 

300 board feet rustic siding, at $1.40 per 100. 4 20 
140 pairs 3 inch strap hinges for ventilators, 

with screws, at 5 cents each 7 00 

20 plain lifting rods for top ventilators, 
with plate, staple, and pin, each rod 
16 inches long, made of % inch strap 

iron, at 6 cents each i 20 

50 ventilator fasteners for side ventilators, 

at 8 cents each 4 00 

1 100 feet of 1% inch wrought iron heating 

pipe, 10 returns, at 6 cents a foot. ... 66 00 
225 feet 1V2 inch pipe for flows, at 8 cents a 

foot 18 00 



74 HOUSES. 

4 manifolds, five i^/4 inch openings on 

side and one i% inch opening at each 

end, at 65 cents each 2 60 

21^ inch long screws, at 30 cents each. , 60 
10 I ^ inch long screws at 25 cents each. . 2 50 

Fittings 4 GO 

I hot water boiler, complete and set ready 
for connection, including 8-inch chim- 
ney of terra cotta pipe 75 00 

50 feet tongue and groove yellow pine for 

two doors, at $2.00 per 100 feet i 00 

Shed at north end of house to cover 

boiler pit, 12 feet long, 8 feet wide, 8 

feet high in front, 6 feet at back, with 

one door and boiler pit, complete... 40 00 

100 pounds of white lead, at 5 cents per 

pound 5 00 

5 gallons of linseed oil, with drier, at 65 

cents per gallon 3 25 

100 pounds of putty, at 3 cents per pound. . 3 00 

Nails and hardware 4 00 

30 boxes ID X 15 glass, double thick, sec- 
ond quality, at $2.25 per box 67 50 

8 boxes 14x16 glass for ventilators, at 

$2.75 per box 22 00 

Water pipes, including i inch main and 

% inch branches for spigots 12 00 

Labor, including all carpenter work, 
painting, pipe fitting, setting boiler, 

etc 125 00 

Freight, etc 50 00 

Total $658 54 

In reference to labor, it may be said that it is 
necessarily one of the most difficult things to es- 



COST OF CONSTRUCTION. 75 

timate. The house can be put up complete by one 
man with a laborer as a helper in twenty-five days 
or less. This would reduce the cost of labor to less 
than one hundred dollars. The amount estimated 
therefore is over rather than under what the actual 
cost ought to be. 

The cost of the second type of house — one 
hundred by twenty-four feet — is as follows : 

52 posts, 4x4 inches, 6 or 7 feet long, at 

35 cents each $18 20 

205 lineal feet of gutter, at $16.20 per 100 

feet 33 21 

650 board feet rough hemlock for sides and 

ends below plates, at $1.50 per 100 

feet 9 75 

300 board feet rustic siding, at $1.40 per 

100 feet 4 20 

2400 lineal feet of sash bars in 14 foot 

lengths, at $1.50 per 100 feet 36 00 

225 lineal feet, 2x8 inch wall plate, at 

$7.20 per 100 feet 16 20 

54 lineal feet of gable rafters, at 23-10 

cents per foot i 24 

112 feet 2x6 ridge, at $5.40 per 100 feet. . 6 05 
40 top ventilators, each 2x4 feet, at 40 

cents each 16 00 

50 side ventilators, each 2x4 feet, at 40 

cents each 20 00 

150 feet headers for top ventilators, at 4 

cents per foot 6 00 

600 board feet hemlock boards for sides of 

beds, at $1.60 per 100 feet 9 60 

200 2x4 inch hemlock posts for sides of 

beds, at 5 cents each 10 00 



76 HOUSES. 

90 pairs of hinges, with screws, for ven- 
tilators, at 5 cents per pair 4 5© 

Ventilating machinery, complete 100 00 

1400 feet i^ inch heating pipe, at 8 cents 

per foot 112 00 

125 feet 2^ inch heating pipe, at 15 cents 

per foot 18 75 

4 manifolds, i^ inch all round, at 75 

cents each 3 00 

Long screws and other fittings 15 00 

400 feet of I inch pipe for purlins and pur- 
lin supports, at 5 cents per foot 20 00 

150 feet 1^/4 inch pipe for ridge supports, at 

6 cents per foot 9 00 

Fittings, including T's, for purlins and 
supports 12 00 

1 boiler, complete and set, including 12 

inch iron or terra cotta chimney.... 150 cx) 

2 doors, at $2.00 each 4 00 

Shed at north end of house, 10 feet 

wide, with glass roof as already de- 
scribed, including boiler pit boarded 

up 100 GO 

300 pounds of white lead, at 5 cents per 

pounds 1500 

10 gallons linseed oil, with drier, at 65 

cents per gallon 6 50 

200 pounds of putty, at 3 cents per pound. . 6 00 

Nails and hardware 15 00 

60 boxes 10x15 glass, at $2.25 per box.. 135 00 
10 boxes 14 x 16 glass for ventilators, at 

$2.75 per box 27 50 

Water pipes, including; two i inch 
mains and % inch laterals, with 
spigots 25 00 



SASH HOUSES. 

Labor for carpenter work, painting, 

and pipe fitting, complete 250 00 

Freight, etc 75 00 

Total $1289 70 



77 




27.— Construction. Putting up the roof. 

We have already referred to houses made of 
sash. For certain purposes houses of this kind will 
be found very useful, and it is important, therefore, 
to have sash on hand. Sash houses can be erected 
quickly and can be taken down when necessary and 



yS HOUSES. 

the sash themselves stored. A sash house is par- 
ticularly valuable for wintering cuttings and taking 
care of them when made in spring. Furthermore, 
a house of this kind will be found very useful for 
growing reserve plants during the summer. It is 
always important to have on hand a supply of good 
plants to transplant where others are lost from the 
main houses. A sash house, constructed with open 
sides and ends, can be used for growing plants, 
and the latter will in such cases do much better 
than when grown in frames or in the open air. In 
the spring, however, when the main houses become 
crowded with boxes of cuttings, the sash house will 
be found exceedingly valuable for storing the flats 
of young plants. In such cases comparatively little 
heat is required, owing to the lateness of the sea- 
son. The young plants are at all times within 
reach, so that they can be kept clean and fumigated 
with gas if it is found necessary to do so. 

For houses of this character three by six sash 
are the most advantageous. Such sash made of 
white pine can be bought complete, that is, glazed 
and with two coats of paint, for two dollars each. 
The woodwork necessary for the construction of 
such a house would cost comparatively little. Or- 
dinarily, in constructing a house of this kind two 
beds are first made, with a walk fourteen inches 
wide between them. These beds are made of twelve- 
inch hemlock boards, which are nailed to two by 
three-inch hemlock posts set four feet apart. In 



SASH HOUSES. 79 

order to keep the boards in place the hemlock posts 
are driven six to eight inches in the ground and then 
wired to opposite posts or to sticks driven down 
for the purpose. The total width of such a house 
should be ten feet, including the path. The path 
being fourteen inches wide, thefe is left on each 
side a bed four feet five inches wide. To support 
the sash, uprights, made of two by four hemlock 
studs, are nailed to the outside boards of the frame. 
These uprights are placed about six feet apart and 
should project two feet above the frame. After 
being set in this way and nailed to the boards, the 
tops should be sawed at the same slant or pitch the 
roof is to have. A two by three stud is then nailed 
to the tops of the posts for a plate and upon this the 
ends of the sash are allowed to rest. The sash are 
simply brought together at the top and nailed, no 
ridge being required. They are also nailed at the 
bottom and no further support is necessary. 

Where the house is intended for late spring and 
summer use it is of course not necessary to provide 
for ventilation, as plenty of air is always circulat- 
ing through the sides and ends, which are left open. 
For cuttings in the spring, however, where some 
heat is necessary, the sides and ends must be closed 
up. This can be done by means of rough pine or 
hemlock boards, over which may be nailed, on the 
outside, tarred paper. The ends may be closed in 
the same way, leaving a door at one end for en- 



8o 



HOUSES. 




II 






o 

I 

I 



SASH HOUSES. 8l 

trance. In such cases it is necessary to effect ven- 
tilation to loosen about every third sash and hinge 
it at the top. Pieces of leather can be used for 
hinges and each sash may be raised and propped 
with a stick. A house of this kind sixty feet long 
should have on each side four movable sash for 
ventilating. The ventilating sash should not come 
opposite each other, otherwise they cannot be hinged 
at the top. 

In order to heat a house of this kind for spring 
use, run two one and one-quarter inch pipes down 
each side, to be fed by a one and one-half inch flow 
running under the ridge or down the sash so as to 
get the proper fall. Such a house may be used 
for growing the violets through the season and is 
one of the most inexpensive that could be erected. 
In such a case, however, it will be necessary to run 
at least four one and one-quarter inch pipes down 
each side, the same to be fed by two one and one- 
half inch flows. 

Such a house for spring use sixty feet in length, 
would cost approximately as follows : 

40 sash, 3x6 feet, at $2.00 each $80 00 

Lumber for sides, ends, and beds 20 00 

Nails, hardware, etc 2 00 

Heating pipes and heating apparatus ... 50 00 

Total $152 00 

As will be seen, this is a very cheap house, and 
will hold from forty to fifty thousand cuttings placed 

6 



82 



FRAMES. 




CONSTRUCTION. 83 

in flats. If planted in the ordinary way, i. e., eight 
by nine inches, it will hold about one thousand 
plants. For summer use alone, that is, without heat- 
ing apparatus, sides, or ends, the house can be erect- 
ed for less than one hundred dollars. For growing 
plants in order to get flowers throughout the winter 
the cost will be about two hundred dollars, on ac- 
count of the extra heating pipe needed. 

If a shorter house than the one here described 
is wanted it is a comparatively easy matter to build 
it. A house thirty feet long would cost little more 
than half as much, so it will be seen that there are 
a number of advantages in having sash for use in 
this way. 

CONSTRUCTION OF FRAMES. 

The simplest form of structure for growing 
violets is the frame, which may be either cold or 
heated. Frames should be located on ground that 
is well drained, and if possible should have some 
protection from north winds. It is customary to 
place them, when practicable, at the foot of a hill, 
but if this cannot be done it is desirable to have 
them on the windward side of trees or some similar 
place where the north wind will not sweep over 
them. 

For violets the frames are ordinarily made on 
top of the ground, that is, it is best not to dig the 
ground out, for the reason that water is apt to 
accumulate around the roots and the plants in con- 



84 



FRAMES. 




CONSTRUCTION. 85 

sequence will suffer. Rough pine boards are used 
for constructing the frames. The back of the frame 
is usually made of a board twelve inches wide, 
while for the front a board eight inches wide is 
required. Frames always face the south, that is, 
they run east and west. The frames may be made 
either continuous or in sections. When continu- 
ous, posts are driven into the ground and boards 
are nailed to them, so that the frame is just wide 
enough to take a sash six feet long. The length 
may be indefinite and will vary according to the 
surroundings and nature of the land. Ordinarily 
it is preferable to have several lengths of frames 
separated by six or eight feet rather than to have 
one long tier. After the boards have been erected 
they should be braced every six feet by a one by 
three-inch strip sunk and nailed into the back and 
front boards level with the edge of each. Frames 
so constructed will cost about seventy-five cents per 
running foot. This is without mats or shutters for 
protecting the plants in very cold weather. 

Mats may be made of straw or burlaps, and 
shutters may be constructed of wood, or if not 
made into the size of the sash themselves, ordinary 
twelve-foot boards can be used. For burlap mats 
or boards the additional cost of frame will be about 
fifteen cents per running foot, which makes the total 
cost ninety cents per foot. Therefore a frame one 
hundred feet long, constructed as described, with 
mats or boards for covering in cold weather, will 



86 



FRAMES. 




CONSTRUCTION. 87 

cost approximately ninety dollars. Such a frame will 
hold about twelve hundred plants, so that the cost 
of space per plant in this case will be approximately 
eight cents. As will be seen, this is the cheapest 
method for growing plants, and for this reason 
many adopt it in the beginning. There are so many 
disadvantages in growing plants in frames, how- 
ever, that they should not be used where it is pos- 
sible to make a house. The disadvantages are re- 
ferred to in detail in other places, so that it is not 
necessary to mention them here. 

The question of mats or of some means of pro- 
tection during excessively cold weather is of great 
importance, for unless such protection is given, the 
plants will be so severely frozen as to be made use- 
less. The backs and fronts of the frames must also 
be protected as soon as cold weather sets in. This 
is usually accomplished by banking up soil or ma- 
nure to within an inch or an inch and a half of the 
top of the frame. The most common practice for 
protecting the plants is using ordinary boards twelve 
inches wide and sixteen feet long. These are sim- 
ply laid on the frames when cold weather comes on 
and serve in a measure to exclude the frost. It is 
much work, however, to put these boards on and 
take them off, for this must be done promptly when- 
ever the conditions require change. Mats are some- 
what more convenient and are used to a consider- 
able extent in various parts of the country. The 
cheapest, and in some respects the best, form of mat 



FRAMES. 




O 



CONSTRUCTION. 89 

is made of ordinary burlap quilted so as to hold 
between each piece about two inches of straw. The 
mats are ordinarily made of what is known as twelve 
ounce burlaps, forty-five inches wide, which costs 
about six cents a yard. The straw between the tack- 
ings of the mat is about two inches thick, but where 
the tackings are made it is only about half an inch 
thick, as the string is pulled tight and tied in a 
square knot to prevent all danger of its getting 
loose. These mats complete cost about thirty-five 
cents each, and with ordinary wear and tear will 
last two seasons. Mats similar to these are now 
offered by many seed dealers at very reasonable 
prices, so that it hardly pays to make them at home. 
Straw mats are also used to a considerable extent, 
but they are more expensive than the others, and 
with the handling they must necessarily get will 
not last very much longer. 

Mats are in all cases preferable to boards. They 
keep the plants warmer and are not so unhandy to 
move about. The boards soon warp, and for this 
reason will not lie close to the glass. They are 
furthermore constantly in the way when laid be- 
tween the frames, and as a rule cannot be handled 
readily by one person. Where frames are made in 
sections it is the practice to have each section long 
enough to take five sash. Usually a space of twelve 
or fifteen inches is left between each section. In 
summer the sash are taken off and the frames are 
stored where the weather will not aflfect them. There 



90 FRAMES. 

is. no particular advantage in making frames in this 
way. 

Frames are occasionally heated by means of 
hot water or steam pipes, and in this way the frost 
is excluded. The ordinary practice of heating 
with hot water is to run one and a quarter-inch 
pipe completely around the frame. The boiler is 
placed at a point several feet lower than the frame, 
and the pipe from this is so run as to give a slight 
rise to the end of the frame farthest from the boiler 
and a slight fall from the far end back to the boiler. 
The flow pipe is usually placed against the board 
on the north side of the frame, while the return 
is run along the board on the south sidt.. 

A boiler with suflicient pipe to heat a frame one 
hundred feet long and six feet wide will cost approxi- 
mately fifty dollars. While there are some advan- 
tages in heating frames in this way, it is a ques- 
tion whether it would not pay in the end to use 
the boiler in heating a house made of sash, as al- 
ready described — that is, having the sash and the 
boiler, better results could probably be obtained by 
constructing a house of sash so that the plants 
would be accessible at all times and there would be 
no delay or trouble in case of bad weather or heavy 
snow. 

A summarized comparison of the cost of the 
different structures described is interesting, and is, 
in round numbers, approximately as follows : 



CONSTRUCTION. 91 

For the first type of house, 100 x 12 feet — 

Per running foot $7 00 

Per square foot of bed space 63 

Per plant grown (2000 plants in each 

house) 32 

For the second type of house, 110x24 feet — 

Per running foot 12 00 

Per square foot of bed space 54 

Per plant (4000 plants in each house) 27 

For a sash house, 60 x 10 feet — 

Per running foot 3 25 

Per square foot of bed space 38 

Per plant 19 

For a cold frame, with mats of straw — 

Per running foot • • 90 

Per square foot of bed space 8 

Per plant 4 

For heated frame — 

Per running foot i 40 

Per square foot of bed space 12 

Per plant 6 

It will be seen that of the two types oi houses 

the larger one is proportionally the cheaper. It 

also has other advantages, the most important being 

that crops such as roses and carnations may, with 

some minor changes, be grown in it. The low type 

of house, on the other hand, is not well adapted 

to the growth of any crop but the violet. In all 

cases there would be a saving where more than one 

house is built. In the case of the one hundred by 

twelve-foot house, without intervening walls — 

3 can be erected complete for $1,600 

5 can be erected complete for 2,100 

There is not so much difference in the one hun- 
dred by twenty-four foot house — 

3 can be erected complete for $2,700 

5 (with a capacity for 20.000 plants) can be 

erected complete for 4,200 



92 WATER SUPPLY. 



CHAPTER IV. 



WATER SUPPLY. 

An abundant supply of good water is essential 
to the successful cultivation of any plant and the 
violet is no exception to this rule. Water is needed 
not only to keep the ground moist, but to syringe 
or spray in order to keep down red spider. For 
ordinar)^ watering no force is required, but for 
spraying, arrangements must be made to get a pres- 
sure of not less than twenty pounds to the square 
inch in the system of pipes. Where city water is 
to be obtained and the rates are reasonable, the sim- 
plest plan is of course to merely get proper con- 
nections with the mains. Where this is not practi- 
cable, however, the water must be obtained either 
from wells or from some other source, and must be 
stored in a tank or some suitable reservoir to be 
drawn upon when wanted. For two or three thou- 
sand plants a tank of one thousand gallons capacity 
will be sufificient, and for every two thousand addi- 
tional plants a thousand gallons more of reservoir 
space will be required. Thus, for ten thousand 
plants a tank holding not less than five thousand 
gallons should be at hand. These statements apply 



GASOLINE ENGINES. 93 

mainly where windmills are used for pumping, but 
they will also hold good for almost any kind of a 
pumping plant, as allowance must always be made 
for breakdowns and other accidents. 

A windmill offers the cheapest power for rais- 
ing water, but its chief drawback is the uncertainty 
of its action. With a reservoir of any of the capac- 
ities given, however, this objection is in a measure 
overcome, as it seldom happens that there are more 
than three or four days without wind and the sup- 
ply in the tank will usually tide over these periods. 
A ten-foot windmill, with pump and tower, and a 
five thousand gallon tank and tower for same com- 
plete, will cost about three hundred dollars. This 
outfit ought, under all ordinary conditions, to serve 
for from ten to fifteen thousand plants. 

As already mentioned, windmills have the ob 
jection of being uncertain in action. They further- 
more do not give the facilities for spraying that 
can be obtained with other power. To obtain twen- 
ty pounds pressure, it will be necessary to have the 
tank raised more than forty feet above the beds, 
and this is not always practicable. Our preference 
is therefore for an economical power that is ready 
at short notice and at all times and can be used for 
developing pressure as it is needed. Such a ma- 
chine is to be found in many of the gasoline engines 
now on the market and which can be bought at very 
reasonable figures. A two-horse-power engine, com- 



94 WATER. 

plete with pump for either deep or shallow well, caii 
be bought for two hundred to two hundred and fifty 
dollars. A tank of three thousand gallons capacity 
will increase the cost fifty dollars, so that the total 
expense of an outfit of this kind will be no more 
than a windmill. By using a ten-gallon closed steel 
expansion tank for an air chamber, water can be 
pumped directly into the pipe system at a pressure of 
twenty-five to thirty or forty pounds per square inch. 
The system can have a safety valve at some con- 
venient point, with the overflow so arranged as to 
go into the main storage reservoir. With this plan 
the water can be drawn from the reservoir for 
ordinary watering, and for spraying the water can 
be forced by the engine and pump directly into the 
pipes. The cost of running such an engine is merely 
nominal. We have used one for several years and 
find that one dollar a month for gasoline and 
lubricating oil will give us five hundred gallons of 
water a day. A thousand gallons of water a day, 
which is enough for ten to fifteen thousand plants, 
would probably not cost more than two dollars or 
two dollars and fifty cents a month. Such gasoline 
engines, if ignited with an electric spark, are per- 
fectly safe, can be started or stopped in a moment, 
and with ordinary care will last for years. 

In piping houses there should be one pipe along 
each path, with hose connections fifty feeet apart. 
For five houses, each one hundred feet by twelve 



TANKS. 95 

feet, the main water pipe should be one and one-half 
inches in diameter, with an inch lateral in each 
house. The hose connections should be three-quarters 
of an inch, as it does not pay to use one-inch hose. 
It rarely happens that watering goes on in more 
than one house at a time, so that the one and one- 
half inch main will be found large enough. 

We do not believe there is any special advantage 
in heating the water in winter. In fact, so far as 
our experience goes cold water is just as good as 
warm water. This is the general conclusion where 
careful comparative experiments have been made. 

It is sometimes an advantage to be able to use 
liquid fertilizers, and for this purpose a small tank 
of five hundred to eight hundred gallons should be 
provided. It should have a separate pipe system, 
one-inch pipe being large enough all round. If this 
tank can be set in a bam loft or some slightly ele- 
vated place where its contents will not freeze it will 
be an advantage. The additional cost of a tank of 
this kind, with pipes and fittings, will be about 
seventy- five dollars. Such a tank would have suffi- 
cient capacity for furnishing liquid food for eight 
to ten thousand plants. 



96 PROPAGATING. 



CHAPTER V. 



PROPAGATING^ SELECTING, PLANTING, CLEANING, 
WATERING. ETC. 



PROPAGATING. 

The violet may be propagated in a number of 
ways, and as much of the success in growing the 
crop depends on proper methods we shall go into 
some detail as to the various practices followed. 

One of the most common methods is to divide 
the crown. This can be done whenever there is 
sufficient crown to divide, but the common way is 
to make the divisions in spring after the flowering 
season is over. The plant is merely lifted with a 
spade or trowel, and after all the dirt is shaken off 
the roots the plant is pulled apart or cut apart, as 
one may think proper. In dividing such a crown 
young plants of various kinds will be found. Some 
will have long, ''leggy" stems, with many leaf scars 
upon them ; some will be short and stocky ; some 
will have hard, woody roots, while others will show 
white, clean-growing roots covered with young 
feeding rootlets and root hairs. It is the general 
practice to throw away the scrawny plants and to 



PROPAGATING. 



97 



put the others in soil or sand, or in a mixture of 
both, in order to induce further root development 
and growth. Some make a practice of putting the 
young plants in a frame outside 



setting them in 




33. — Cuttings with hard, wiry roots, from divided crowns. 

rows about three inches apart and two inches distant 
in the row. If sand is used about four inches is 
spread on the ground, and after being firmed with 
a brick or board the young plants are set in with 



98 



CARE OF PLANTS. 




PROPAGATING. 99 

a dibble. Whitewashed sash is kept over the frame 
and plenty of air is given night and day when the 
weather permits. As the plants are never put out 
in this way until the first or middle of April no 
heat is required. In case soil is used care is taken 
to add about three inches of good rotten manure 
to ordinary garden soil. The manure is thoroughly 
worked in and the ground is made as fine as it is 
possible to make it with rake and spade. It should 
never be packed. When smoothed off set the plants 
the same as described for sand. In both cases the 
plants must be watched carefully and syringed every 
bright day in order to keep down red spider, taking 
care not to over-wet the soil. In six or eight weeks 
after setting in frames as described, the plants will 
be ready to transplant to the place where they are 
to make their summer growth. 

There are many objections to propagating plants 
in this way, and the best growers have long since 
abandoned it. In dividing the crown, and thereby 
carrying over each year some of the old roots, 
various diseases affecting the former are carried 
over also, and if the practice is continued from year 
to year the tendency is to gradually develop a weak, 
non-resistant stock. The grower in such cases 
gradually finds himself losing his ability to get good 
plants and usually satisfies his conscience by saying 
that luck is against him. We have examined 
thousands of apparently strong, vigorous plants. 



LofC. 



lOO CARE OF PLANTS. 



35.-Common form of cutting from divided crown. This 
will make a good plant if properly rooted m soil. 



PROPAGATING. lOI 

after being lifted in the spring preparatory to 
division, but have never yet found one where the 
roots, both 3^oung and old, did not show disease. 
Of these diseases we shall speak in the proper place ; 
suffice it to say here that they are of such a nature 
that they gradually continue their insidious work 
after the young plant is put out, and while the latter 
may appear strong when it is put in the ground, 
the trouble is present, and after a while, when an 
extra strain comes, the effects, in one form or 
another, will surely appear. 

Another serious objection to this method is 
that it must necessarily be done late, after blooming 
time is over or nearly over. This in many sections 
will delay the work of propagation to such an extent 
that if unusual weather conditions prevail through 
April or May much injury will result to the young 
plants. If a hot spell of weather comes on, as it 
often does in the early part of May, the young plants 
are sure to suffer, and weak, stunted stock is the 
result. We have never found it safe to put in stock 
after April fifteenth. 

Another method of propagation, and one open 
to fewer objections than the last, consists in cutting 
the offshoots, or cuttings, from the main plant any 
time from the first of February to the middle of 
March. In this case the main plant is not disturbed, 
but the young offshoots, which in good plants are 
found in abundance, are cut off, only those being 



102 



CARE OF PLANTS. 



selected which show young, white roots. These 
roots in most cases have never reached the soil, 
but are sent out into the semi-dark, moist air, made 
so by the plant as a whole. A good, strong crown 
will give from ten to twenty cuttings, such as we 
have described, between the first part oi February 
and the middle of March. As soon as the cuttings 
are removed they should be thrown into a box with 




36. — Lath box, or flat, for rooted cuttings 

a lid or cover, so as to keep them from wilting. 
When a sufficient quantity has been cut they are 
trimmed up and placed in soil as follows : 

Prepare the soil several weeks in advance, using 
four parts good rotten sod and one part finely rotted 
manure. Mix thoroughly and screen through an 
ordinary sand screen or anything having a similar- 
sized mesh. Keep the soil where it cannot get too 
wet and never handle it when there is too much 
moisture present. The soil being prepared, make a 
lot of boxes, using for the ends strips of undressed 



PROPAGATING. IO3 

white pine one inch thick, three inches wide, and 
fourteen inches long. For the sides and bottom 
use ordinary laths cut exactly in half. In making 
the boxes put on the bottom first, nailing on the two 
outside laths at the start, then filling in between 
with others, allowing about a quarter of an inch 
space between each two pieces of lath. The bottom 
being made, put on the sides. Each side will take 
two pieces of lath without space between them. The 
boxes are now ready to fill with soil, but before 
doing this spread on the bottom of each box a thin 
coating of wet sphagnum moss to keep the soil from 
washing out. Put in enough soil to stand about 
half an inch higher than the edges of the box, then 
take a brick and gently press the soil down so that 
it is uniformly about half an inch below the edges 
of the box. Set the cuttings with a dibble, so that 
they will average one hundred to the box. 

In one box put thirteen rows of eight plants 
each, in another twelve rows of eight plants each, 
and so on. After setting out in this way, the plants 
are shaded and watered carefully for a few days, 
and then moved outside into a cold frame or prefer- 
ably kept in a house where they can be looked after 
at all times. If put outside they should be kept 
covered with a whitewashed sash. Where sashes 
are at hand we prefer to make a temporary house 
out of them. Such a house has already been 
described, and it will be found that the plants can 



I04 CARE OF PLANTS. 

be looked after much better in them than in a frame. 
Moreover they will grow better because the air can 
be kept moist, diseases and insects can be kept down, 
and all conditions necessary for growth can " be 
managed to better advantage. 

We mention the ordinary cold frame with sash 
not because we favor it, but merely to show that 
they have been given fair trial and have been found 
wanting. This method of propagation applies 
particularly to the Campbell violet. If all the 
conditions are carefully watched, fine plants can 
be grown in this way. We do not advise using boxes 
or fiats with close hottoins, as drainage is not so 
good and the roots in consequence will not develop 
so zvell. Roots need air at all times, and where this 
is given through proper soil, proper drainage, and 
proper watering, it is astonishing the way the young 
plants start off and grow. 

The third method of propagation and the one 
generally followed by growers of Marie Louise, 
consists in taking cuttings from the crowns any 
time between the middle of January and the middle 
of March. These cuttings in many cases have 
already made some air roots, but these should all 
be trimmed off at the same time the cutting proper 
is trimmed up. After trimming, the cuttings are 
put in sand to root. The sand is an important item. 
It should be moderately coarse and very clean, 
especially as regards decaying leaves or organic 



PROPAGATING. IO5 

matter of any kind. If obtained from creeks or 
small streams it is apt to have too much organic 
matter in it. River sand and bank sand are the 
best. At Poughkeepsie most of the propagating 
sand is obtained from banks which crop out at 
various places, and it is almost wholly free from 
organic matter. The banks are really veins or 
strata of sand deposited ages ago. One cannot be 
too particular about the sand, and while we cannot 
describe exactly the kind to use, the few hints 
thrown out will enable the man of intelligence to 
properly exercise his judgment. We make it a point 
never to use the sand hut once, as it is cheaper to get 
nezv sand than to have the cuttings infected with 
disease. 

The sand may be put in boxes as already de- 
scribed for soil. It should be pressed a little more 
firmly than the soil and watered before putting in 
the cuttings. The cuttings we put in with a dibble 
the size of a lead pencil, two hundred cuttings to a 
box. After filling the boxes the cuttings should be 
looked after carefully for about two weeks or more. 
During very bright days they should be covered with 
single sheets of newspaper, and if the weather is 
warm and the sun bright the papers should have a 
dash of water thrown on them with the sprinkling 
can during the heat of the day. Place the cuttings 
in a sash house as already described, or if there is 
room in the houses proper keep them there. Never 



io6 



CARE OF PLANTS. 




^ 



a, 
o 



PROPAGATING. IO7 

allow them, under any circumstances, to wilt, for if 
they do it means another reduction in the total output 
of salable flowers. Where facilities are at hand the 
cuttings can be rooted in a cutting bench, using 
about three inches of sand firmed and watered. Put 
the cuttings in rows about one and one-half inches 
apart in the row. The cutting bench must be 
carefully shaded and must be so arranged that 
currents of air cannot sweep over it. The shed 
house, with glass roof sloping to the north, already 
described, forms an excellent place for such a bench. 
It requires four to eight weeks for cuttings put in 
sand as described to root properly. They may stay 
in longer than this without injury, but as soon as 
they are well rooted they should be transferred to 
lath boxes containing soil, one hundred to a box. If 
there is space in the greenhouse the rooted cuttings 
may be set in one of the beds. Set in rows two 
inches apart and one inch in the row, using a dibble 
made by trimming to a point a piece of broom handle 
six or eight inches long. Never use old soil for 
these cuttings, that is, soil that has once been used 
for violets. It costs very little extra labor to get 
fresh soil for the purpose, and the labor will pay a 
hundred fold. 

The principal object of this transplanting is to 
get good, strong, clean roots. We have had excellent 
success in this matter by throwing the old soil out 
of a bed to a depth of eight inches and then putting 



io8 



CARE OF PLANTS. 




Si 



PROPAGATING. IO9 

in about two inches of coarse coal ashes, broken 
cHnkers, and the hke. On top of this put two inches 
of sifted coal ashes, and finally four inches of good 
soil, made, mixed, and sifted as already described. 
The roots run down into the ashes and come out 
clean, white, and beautiful, and covered with root 
hairs. 

Growers attempt, once in a while, to set directly 
from the sand to the beds where the plants are to 
make their growth. We have tried this plan, but 
cannot recommend it, as the risk in handling the 
plants is too great. If cloudy, damp weather follows 
after the planting no harm may result, but if it 
should be bright and warm the plants will suffer in 
spite of all that can be done. There are other objec- 
tions to this plan, but they need not be mentioned 
here, as the best growers do not follow the practice 
at all. 

We have now described the three principal 
methods followed in propagation. The last we 
recommend to those who have had considerable 
experience and who are growing Marie Louise. Our 
preference is for a combination of the second and 
third methods. In both cases the cuttings are taken 
from the plants as they stand in the bed. Those 
which have good, clean, white roots can be put in 
the soil as already described, but those which are 
just as good in every way except as to the number 
of roots, may have all the latter cut of¥ and made 



no CARE OF PLANTS. 

to make new ones in the sand. Following this 
practice, about half the cuttings go into the soil and 
half into sand. This practice is especially commend- 
able where Campbells are grown, but for Marie 
Louise, as already pointed out, the sand method 
throughout is beheved to be the best. 

The plants when placed in soil as already de- 
scribed are to stand there until they are finally set 
in the beds, which south of New York, Pittsburg, 
and Chicago should not be later than the first of 
June. North of this they may run till the middle of 
June, or at the very latest the first of July. Leaving 
out the first practice entirely, it will be seen that in 
the second the young plants stand in soil-filled flats 
or boxes from sixty to one hundred and twenty days 
and then are set directly where they are to grow 
for flowering. In the third practice the young 
plants are in sand about fifty days, when they are 
transferred to soil where they remain until planting 
time, which runs, according to locality, from the 
first of June to the first of July. Any one, by 
managing properly and having not over twenty 
thousand plants, ought to be able to do all his 
planting in fifteen to twenty days. In our section, 
Washington, we prefer to plant between the first of 
May and the first of June. 

We have omitted the practice of fall propaga- 
tion, but it will be well to discuss it briefly, as some 
of the older growers believed in it on the ground 



PROPAGATING. Ill 

that it was the only way the stock could be main- 
tained in a healthy condition. Their argument was 
that the violet is a plant that needs a period of rest, 
and that propagating in spring just after the plant 
had been pushed through winter flowering is con- 
trary to nature's methods of increasing the plants. 
It is true that the violet makes its principal effort 
in the way of sending out runners in the fall, 
and theoretically this would be the proper time 
to propagate, as good wood can then be had in 
abundance. Practically, however, there are many 
objections to the plan. Adopting it necessitates 
carrying the young plants through the winter, and, 
no matter how much care is exercised in watching 
them, they nearly always suffer either from being 
kept too cold or too warm, too dry or too moist. 
In other words, despite every precaution they get 
stunted or checked so severely that many of them 
never rally from the shock; consequently they do not 
prove as vigorous as cuttings made in the spring 
and properly handled. 

Another question to consider, and one that we 
have found of much importance, is that during their 
long stand in flats or beds they are apt to become 
infected with one or more of the several stem and 
root diseases, and while these may not be plainly 
evident in the spring, they are present, nevertheless, 
and will develop and do serious injury later. There 
is this to be said, however, that choosing between 



112 CARE OF PLANTS. 

the methods of division after blooming time and 
propagating in the fall, we would prefer the latter, 
because we believe that better results will follow. 
Finally, in using the fall-rooted plants there is 
always the danger of the plants getting too big. It 
is as bad to have a plant too big as it is to have it 
too small, and if set too early or started too early 
the growth will become so heavy in hot weather 
that it will be found impossible to keep down diseases 
and insects. If a grower has everything at his 
disposal in the way of houses and facilities for 
handling the young plants it would probably be well 
to propagate some of the stock in the fall, but if he 
has to put up with the ordinary facilities he had 
better leave fall cuttings alone. Fall propagating 
really means a special house for the proper care 
and handling of the young plants through a period 
of six or eight months — a handling so that they will 
not grow too much or too little (problems that are 
beyond the reach of most men). 

We have now described the mere act of propa- 
gating or increasing the number of plants and have 
next to consider the most important question con- 
nected with violet growing, namely, the selection 
of stock with a view of increasing vigor and pro- 
ductiveness. 

SELECTION OF STOCK FOR VIGOR AND PRODUCTIVENESS. 

To grasp this question fully we must first realize 
that the violet, like other plants, is a plastic organism 



SELECTION OF STOCK. II3 

— that within a certain range it has power to change 
or to adapt itself to the conditions which surround it. 
This plasticity or adaptability of the plant is of the 
utmost importance, for if all its functions were fixed 
absolutely it could not suffer any change for long, 
however slight. We find, therefore, in practice, 
that plants grown in one section and moved to 
another behave differently — it may be in the matter 
of time of blooming, quantity of flowers, character 
of foliage, size or color of flowers, length of flower 
stem, or in many other directions. Recognizing this 
fact, and those that are naturally correlated with it, 
we have the important practical conclusion that the 
only way for a man to attain the maximum results 
from the plants is to work steadily, intelligently, and 
rationally tozuard the end of developing a strain 
zvhich zmll Ht the conditions which practice and 
judgment enable him to provide. Of course, the 
man himself is limited in this matter, but he should 
endeavor first of all to find out what his limitations 
are and then concentrate his efforts in the field 
where there is hope of practical results. As a matter 
of fact, the limitations are more fancied than real, 
and where the work is intelligently undertaken and 
carried out it is astonishing what power is put within 
the grasp. 

It is seldom that violet growers average more 
than fifty flowers to the plant for the season. 
There is no good reason why this number should 



114 



CARE OF PLANTS. 




br, 




CI 


^ 




^H 








,0 


CO 


Mq 


^ 


o 



SELECTION OF STOCK. II5 

not be increased to one hundred or even one hundred 
and fifty flowers per plant without additional room, 
additional heat, additional fertilizers, or additional 
work of any kind except in the care necessary to 
keep up the stock by proper selection. How then 
should this selection be started, and how should it 
be continued in order to reap the full benefit from 
it? To start at the beginning, it will be found that 
the first stock of plants, no matter where obtained, 
will show differences : Some will be small, some 
large; some will give long-stemmed flowers, others 
flowers with short stems ; some will show a tendency 
to throw flowers off in color; some will have a 
straggling habit of growth, others will be compact, 
with large leaves on long petioles. As the season 
for flower picking arrives these plants should be 
carefully gone over and the grower should fix in 
his own mind his ideal or type. It does not take 
long to learn what plants more closely approximate 
the type. Out of one thousand plants there may not 
the first year be more than a hundred that show the 
characteristics he is after. We cannot put down 
in black and white what these characteristics are, 
except in the most general way. The plants should 
be vigorous and give every evidence that they are 
growing. They should have a compact, symmetrical 
appearance. The leaves should be glossy, green, 
large, and on long petioles, and should feel, when 
you run your hand over them, like living, growing 



ii6 



CARE OF PLANTS. 




METHOD OF SELECTION. II7 

things, and not like they were made of leather or 
cloth. If a hundred or less of such plants are found 
stake them before flowering commences, and to each 
stake tie an ordinary shipping tag. Push the stake 
well into the soil so that it will not interfere with 
working the beds, and tie the tag on securely so 
that it will not come off or get lost. Each plant is 
then given a number, which is never duplicated. 
We give one hundred plants as the limit for the 
first year's work, for this is about as many as one 
can well handle until more experience is gained. 
There would, therefore, be one hundred numbers — 
from one to one hundred. Every time a tagged plant 
is reached while picking, count the number of 
flowers picked. We presume that there will be some 
who upon reading this, will say : "I have not the 
time to do this and what is the good of it all 
anyway?" These are the men who insist that luck 
governs the question, and while they will always 
be found they are constantly vexed with ups and 
downs and sooner or later quit. As a matter of 
fact, it takes very little time to do what has been 
outlined, and any one who will follow the practice 
for three years will be willing to hire additional 
help, if necessary, to keep up the work, because he 
will see that it pays. 

When the season's work is over it will be found 
that the tagged plants show many interesting facts. 
They show the total number of flowers picked and 



Il8 CARE OF PLANTS. 

the number picked each month, and they show too 
the relation of flower yield to weather conditions if 
one wishes to carry the matter into this field. Some 
plants have grown fifty flowers, others as many as 
one hundred and fifty. Some will give the greatest 
number of flowers in December and January, others 
in February and March. Here, then, are practical 
points that should at once be taken advantage of. 
Vigor, health, compactness of growth being equal, 
we would want our plants to yield as many flowers 
as possible, and at a time when they are worth the 
most money; so that of two plants both of which 
give a hundred flowers, we would give the preference 
to the one that yields the most flowers during 
December and January rather than to the one that 
gives the greater yield during February and March. 
Of the pedigree stock we would eliminate all plants 
where the yield the first year dropped below seventy- 
five flowers. The second year we would eliminate 
all plants that failed to give more than ninety 
flowers, and the third year all those that failed to 
give a hundred good blooms. 

Each plant can be counted on to give not less 
than ten first-class cuttings, so that if only fifty 
plants come up to the standard the first year they 
will give at least five hundred good rooted cuttings 
for the second season. Each of these plants should 
carry the number of their parent, with an additional 
mark to indicate the season; for example, the ten 



METHOD OF SELECTION. II9 

plants from number one the first year would all be 
recorded as plants a, next year the plants from these 
would be plmits h, and so on. If the work is carried 
out well the first year, three hundred plants, repre- 
senting the best of the five hundred, can be staked 
the second season. These receive their specified 
numbers, are watched as before, and will give from 
one thousand to one thousand five hundred good 
plants for the next season's crop. Working in this 
way, and of course keeping clearly before one the 
importance of looking after every detail of culture, 
the average yield can be brought up to the one 
hundred mark, where it may be kept as long as the 
proper vigilance and intelligence are exercised in 
the work. We are satisfied that two-thirds of the 
failures in growing violets come about from not fully 
recognizing the principles we have here set forth. 
Left to itself, or if not properly assisted, the tendency 
of the violet is to retrograde, partly no doubt because 
it has been grown so long under abnormal conditions 
and partly for other reasons, which it is not neces- 
sary to discuss in detail here. We find it very much 
the condition of a loaded car on a steep grade. It 
is always ready to go down hill the moment we 
take off the brake or remove the block from the rail. 
The farther it goes the more difficult it is to stop, 
and if we do not put forth some effort there will 
be a general smash-up sooner or later. On the 
other hand, by dint of much labor we can slowly 



I20 CARE OF PLANTS. 

push Up grade, but we are always confronted with 
the fact that the moment we lose our watchfulness 
the down-hill motion commences, and away goes 
everything we have gained. 

The author's work is done when he points out 
the facts and principles involved, and it remains 
for the reader to do the rest. 

PLANTING. 

We have pointed out in the previous chapter 
how to prepare the soil and have shown in the first 
part of this chapter how the plants are to be cared 
for until the time for planting. As already stated, 
we prefer to get our plants out permanently between 
the first of May and the first of June in latitudes 
south of New York, but north of this planting may 
be delayed fifteen or twenty days. Having the soil 
stacked and ready near the houses the first operation 
is to throw out the old plants and remove six inches 
of the soil from the beds. The old plants are merely 
lifted with a spade, the earth is shaken off, and then 
they are thrown outside into a heap to be hauled 
away to the dump or burned. If hauled away we 
want to get them as far away from the houses as 
possible. In any event, they should never be allowed 
to lie around and rot and decay. 

The soil is best handled in wheelbarrows. It 
is hauled out and thrown in a heap close by, to be 
finally disposed of when more time is at hand. When 



PLANTING. 121 

the six inches of soil is taken out all boards are 
examined and if they are found rotted they are taken 
out and new ones put in. The beds are next spaded 
up with a fork and air-slacked lime is thrown 
over the ground in sufficient quantity to thoroughly 
whiten it. The new soil is then brought in with 
the wheelbarrows and dumped into the beds. 
Enough soil is brought in to fill the beds just even 
with the boards. In no case is the soil rolled, walked 
on, or packed in any zuay. When sufficient soil is 
in the bed the latter is leveled off with a rake, all 
clods, stones, large sticks, etc., being thrown out. 
Finally the beds are made smooth and level by 
means of a straight-edged board four inches wide 
and not longer than the width of the bed. 

The bed is now ready to be marked of¥. This 
can be done in a number of ways, the main object 
being to get the plants set as nearly in straight rows 
as possible, eight by nine inches apart. It often 
happens that the board marking the walk is not 
straight and if the plants are set straight by a line 
they appear crooked on account of the board, as that 
is what the eye usually follows. To keep the rows 
straight with the board use a simple T square made 
of a piece of four-inch white pine. By using the 
board of the walk as a base for the square all the 
rows come in line with the walk, and at least appear 
more pleasing to the eye even if they are not mathe- 
matically straight. By means of a saw permanent 



122 CARE OF PLANTS. 

lines are marked off nine inches apart on the board 
forming the edge of the walk. Similar lines are made 
eight inches apart on the square. The square can 
then be moved rapidly along over the ground and 
a hole made with a dibble where the plant is to be 
set. We usually try to have the plants set back at 
least five inches from the edge of the walk, so it 
takes a little figuring at first to tell how to divide 
the space across the bed. As soon as the bed is 
marked the plants are set, as better results are 
obtained in this way than where the ground is 
allowed to settle. In case it is not practicable to 
plant at once, and if the ground settles too much be- 
fore planting can be done, the beds should be freshly 
turned up with a fork and then raked down and 
smoothed as before described. 

The plants are cut out of the boxes or bed where 
they have been growing and all dead leaves and 
buds are trimmed off. They are then carried to the 
bed where they are to be planted, and laid opposite 
each mark made by the dibble. The advantage of 
having the stock plants in light flats comes in here, 
for the flats can be carried to the bed and the plants 
cut out there — we say cut out, for we usually use a 
putty knife for the purpose. This is first run 
down between the rows of plants in the box, after 
which a cut is made between each two plants. In 
this way each plant comes out with a square piece 
of soil and the roots are disturbed very little. One 



PLANTING. 123 

good man can set as fast as two or three can prepare 
the plants as described. Where the reach is less than 
five feet the plants can be set from the walk, but 
if the beds are so wide that one cannot reach, plant- 
ing is done from a board laid across the bed, but not 
so that it will compact the soil. Use a board twelve 
inches wide, and work backward in planting. Adopt- 
ing this plan, two rows can be planted without mov- 
ing the board. The planting itself is an important 
item, and many plants will be lost and others injured 
unless care is exercised. The grower himself had 
better attend to this matter. We have never found 
anything better than the fingers for planting. A 
slight hole is made and the square of earth contain- 
ing the young plant and its roots is pushed into the 
loose soil. A movement of the hand around the plant 
levels the soil and firms it, and the work is done. 
Having the beds filled and leveled and the plants 
furnished, one man can mark the soil and set three 
hundred plants an hour. If the day is warm and 
bright it will be necessary to water the plants as 
they are put out. One can plant for an hour, 
however, and then water, allowing the water to run 
gently from the end of the hose, and following the 
rows so as not to plow up the ground. At this sea- 
son of the year it is, of course, necessary to have all 
ventilators and doors open in order to get plenty of 
air. The glass also should be well shaded with 
whitewash or with white lead mixed with turpen- 



124 



CARE OF PLANTS. 




SHADING YOUNG PLANTS. 1 25 

tine, either one to be put on with a brush. We have 
used laths for shading, but abandoned them for the 
reason that they interfere with the Hght in such a 
way as to hinder growth. The shading should be 
only moderately heavy, and it should be kept as 
nearly as possible the same throughout the entire 
year; that is, winter and summer we have found it 
an advantage to shade, but this may not hold good 
farther north, where sunshine is less abundant. 

All of our directions, it will be seen, apply to 
plants grown under glass throughout the year. We 
do not recommend field planting of violets anywhere, 
that is, if it is intended to grow them for flowering 
in houses the following winter. It is very important, 
however, to have some reserve plants, for there is 
always more or less loss in the beds. Here again 
the cheap frame house comes into good use, for it 
is well adapted for growing reserve plants. It is 
best to count on a loss of ten per cent, although this 
is heavier than it ought to be. For ten thousand 
plants, therefore, it would be necessary to have a 
reserve of at least one thousand plants to draw upon. 

When frames alone are used the plants can be 
set in two ways: First, the frames themselves can 
be put down where they are to stay, and the plants 
set in rows eight by nine inches, as already described ; 
second, the frames can be made, as already described, 
in sixteen-foot lengths, and stored until wanted. The 
plants are then set directly in the open, nine inches 



126 



CARE OF PLANTS, 




CLEANING. 127 

apart in the row, the rows being just long enough 
so that the frame will fit over them. There are so 
many objections to these methods, and the obstacles 
to overcome are so great, that we do not recommend 
them except in violet farming. Shade here is of the 
greatest importance during the summer, and where 
the plants are grown in open frames or without 
frames this can only be brought about by using lath 
screens or something similar. The screens, when 
made, should not be too dense, and should be raised 
at least four feet above the plants. In southern Cali- 
fornia violets are grown the whole season with no 
other protection than screens made of laths, raised 
about eight feet above the plants. The flowers are 
shipped to Los Angeles and other points, and are of 
fair quality. 

After the planting is completed and everything 
about the place has been cleaned up and put in shape, 
the serious work of caring for the plants commences. 

CLEANING^ WATERING^ SYRINGING^ MULCHING AND 
FEEDING. 

Eternal vigilance is necessary in the matter of 
cleaning. We try to get over the plants at least once 
a week, cutting off all yellow and dying leaves and 
gently stirring the surface of the soil with the fin- 
gers. All weeds, too, are pulled up or torn up in 
the stirring. In cleaning, we never use anything but 
a knife, as pulling the leaves off is a bad practice, 



128 CARE OF PLANTS. 

for it is apt to tear the bark and open the way for 
attacks of fungi. Toward the middle of August the 
runners will begin to come, and they must be cut 
oif as soon as possible. Many abortive flowers will 
appear, too, and they must not be allowed to stay on 
the plant. In cleaning, we have made it an invariable 
practice to throw all dead leaves, runners, etc., into 
a box or basket, emptying these into a barrel or box 
outside at suitable intervals. We do not believe it 
wise to throw the material into the walks, for no 
matter how soon the latter may be swept, some of 
the decaying material is trampled upon, and in this 
way the first steps toward the beginning of disease 
may be taken. The only safe rule to follow is never 
to allozv a leaf of any kind to lie around and decay in 
the houses or frames. We have time and time again 
seen growers cleaning their plants, especially where 
they are in frames, and throwing the dead leaves, 
runners and weeds out under their feet, to be tram- 
pled into the mud. Such growers have fair success 
for a season or two, then wonder why it is that dis- 
eases and insect pests steadily increase until they 
finally get the upper hand. Cleanliness at all times, 
and a thorough destruction of all diseased leaves, 
cuttings and plants are matters that should never he 
neglected. 

Watering, to the ordinary man, may really seem 
like a simple matter, but it is one of the most import- 
ant factors in the growth of this or any. other crop. 



WATERING. 129 

No hard and fast rules can be laid down on this sub- 
ject. Water when the plants need it, which can only 
be determined by experience. We never water over 
head, but use the end of a three-quarter-inch hose, 
held in such a way that the water runs out freely 
but not forcibly. If the water comes out with too 
much force the soil is puddled and the plants may be 
washed up. When the plants are still young, and 
the ground is soft, a good plan is to fasten to the end 
of the hose an ordinary tin pancake turner, such as 
can be bought anywhere for ten cents. This can be 
fastened to the hose by a rubber band, and will 
spread the water so that it will fall in a thin sheet 
about four inches wide. The water soaks in when 
put on in this way, and seldom causes the formation 
of a crust — the thing to be avoided. Plants in hot 
weather require water almost every day. At no 
time should the plants be allowed to become dry, nor 
should water be given so often that the soil is kept 
constantly in a pasty condition. 

In our judgment the best results will be ob- 
tained when the variation of the moisture in the soil 
is allowed the widest range the plants will stand. 
What this is cannot be given in words, as too many 
conditions are involved. It is a question that must 
be studied by each individual and by him worked 
out for his own case. The point zue zvish to make is 
that better grozvth can he obtained by allowing a 
certain range or variation in the moistiire content of 



130 CARE OF PLANTS. 

the soil than where an attempt is made to keep the 
moisture content at one point, or near one point. If, 
for example, we find that in a certain type of soil 
the best growth is obtained where the maximum 
moisture content approximates twenty per cent., it 
will be best not to attempt to hold the moisture stead- 
ily at this point, but rather to allow a variation of 
five to eight per cent, as this is more apt to givL- 
optimum conditions for growth than where an effort 
is put forth to hold it at one point. 

It is not necessary here to go into a discussion 
of the physiological questions involved in this mat- 
ter. Suffice it to say that we may look at the plant 
in the light of a machine kept in operation in part 
by stimuli from without. Stimuli may come by 
changes in conditions, and if everything works in 
harmonyj perfect growth is the result. 

As the season advances, the plants will require 
more and more water, and every precaution will have 
to be taken not to let them wilt or to get on the dry 
side so often as to check growth. The plants must 
be kept growing without a check of any kind, so 
that by the middle of September they practically 
cover the ground. 

From the time of planting constant care must 
be exercised in the matter of syringing. Plants 
ought to be syringed throughout the summer and 
early fall not less than three times a week. We will 
discuss this question more fully in the chapter on 



FEEDING. 131 

insects and diseases, as the syringing is mainly to 
keep down red spider. Always select bright days 
for the syringing, so as to have the plants dry off 
before night. As the season advances, and the 
plants grow larger, much care must be exercised in 
syringing, otherwise serious results may follow, as 
will be pointed out further on. By the first or mid- 
dle of October it will be necessary to withhold all 
water from the foliage, and if the spraying has been 
thorough this can be done without fear of injury 
from spider. 

About the middle of August we like to give 
the beds a thin mulching of finely rotted manure. 
Horse manure is best for this purpose, as it works 
up fine and dries out better on the bed. Put on just 
enough to cover the ground, and work it well around 
the plants. The manure mulching serves to keep the 
ground moist and free from weeds. It also keeps the 
flowers cleaner when they come, and checks the 
growth of slime and green molds that sometimes 
appear on the soil. Mulching with sphagnum and 
with pine shavings has been tried, but both were 
abandoned in favor of the rotted horse manure. 

Feeding, after the plants are once established, 
is an important matter, but our advice to the begin- 
ners is to let it severely alone. There are three or 
four don'ts that come in aptly at this point: (i) 
Don't imagine that you must feed your plants in 
order to get the best results. This is true of some 



132 CARE OF PLANTS. 

crops, but not of the violet. (2) Don't trifle with 
chemicals. They may be all right in the hands of an 
expert, but it is like putting strong medicine into the 
hands of a layman and turning him loose to doctor 
his friends. (3) If you must use chemical fertiliz- 
ers, don't experiment on all your plants, but set aside 
a few dozen in one bed and a few dozen in another ; 
make your trials carefully, and compare the results 
obtained with those where no chemicals have been 
used. We know from many experiments that the 
only safe way is to feed as little as possible, as the 
plants, if let alone, will take care of themselves, pro- 
vided the soil is prepared as we have described else- 
where. When you do feed, apply only manure 
water, made by soaking good, strong cow manurejn 
water, using about one-half bushel of manure to the 
barrel of water. A watering with this kind of fer- 
tilizer every ten or fifteen days during the winter 
will do no harm and may do good. Great care, how- 
ever, must be exercised in keeping the manure water 
fresh and odorless. If it is allowed to sour and 
become offensive it should never be run on the beds, 
as the flowers will take up the odor. If we were 
growing roses, carnations or chrysanthemums, our 
discussion of the use of liquid fertilizers would be 
different, as these are crops that can stand feeding 
while the violet cannot — at least this has been our 
experience, and the result of observations in many 
places and under widely varying conditions. 



TEMPERATURE. 1 33 

In concluding this chapter there are several 
points to which we wish to call special attention : 
( I ) Never delay propagating the plants until late in 
spring, for such stock cannot be depended upon. (2) 
Always propagate two, or even three times more 
plants than your houses or frames will hold, in order 
to cover risks and to have plenty of stock for selec- 
tion. (3) From the time the cutting leaves the 
parent plant until it has fulfilled its mission as a 
full-grown crown, never allow it to become checked 
in any way. (4) Adopt a rigid system of selection. 
(5) Practice cleanliness about every part of the 
work. (6) Apply water with due regard for the 
plant's wants and not by any set of rules. 



134 TEMPERATURE AND VENTILATION. 



CHAPTER VI. 



TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS AND VENTILATION. 

The violet must be kept cool, and any attempt 
to force it by heat will prove disastrous. For Camp- 
bell violets an effort should be made to keep the night 
temperature between forty-five and fifty degrees, 
with a day temperature, in bright weather, ten to 
fifteen degrees higher. Marie Louise should be kept 
cooler, say forty to forty-five at night, with day tem- 
perature fifty-five to sixty. 

When the weather is cloudy and cold do not at- 
tempt to keep the inside temperature in the sixties or 
even the fifties. Probably the safest rule to follow 
with the violet at all times is to manage the condi- 
tions so as to have, as near as possible, an average 
temperature of eight or ten degrees above freezing. 
For example, if the temperature outside is thirty 
degrees above zero in the day time, and the weather 
cloudy, keep the temperature of the houses not more 
than forty to forty-five degrees. If sunny weathei 
prevails, the temperature will naturally go higher, 
but do not allow it to get above sixty degrees, if it 
can be avoided, by ventilation and allowing the heat- 
ing pipes to become cold. In the climate of Wash- 



VENTILATION. 1 35 

ington and vicinity it is very seldom necessary to 
have any fire in the heater during sunny weather, 
unless the temperature outside is excessively cold 
and high winds are blowing. As a rule, the heat of 
the sun will be amply sufficient to keep the houses in 
good condition, so that it is always safest to either 
bank or cover the fires, or else allow them to die out 
entirely during the day. Of course, farther north 
these rules will not apply, but in a general way they 
will hold good everywhere. It must be understood 
that the violet is unlike the rose or carnation as re- 
gards heat, and as already pointed out, any attempt to 
force it will result in overgrowth of leaves and blast- 
ing of the flowers. 

Ventilation has already been briefly mentioned, 
but it is important to call attention to this matter 
more specifically, for it is of the highest importance 
to realize the necessity of giving plenty of air to 
the plant at all times. It is impossible to give direc- 
tions as to how and when to ventilate. The violet is 
a lover of fresh air and plenty of it, so that there is 
seldom a day when more or less air should not be 
given. It must not be supposed that this is a simple 
matter, and one that can be left to the hired man or 
some irresponsible person. No two days in the year 
are exactly alike, so far as the requirements for ven- 
tilation are concerned. It frequently happens that 
air will be needed the first thing in the morning, and 
it should be given, not all at once, but little by little, 



136 TEMPERATURE AND VENTILATION. 

as the day advances and the plants require it. In the 
course of such a day changes may come about, ne- 
cessitating letting the air off, so that there is a con- 
stant changing either one way or another throughout 
the entire day. Even at night it is necessary to 
observe these precautions in order to keep the plants 
in good condition. It has been our practice to allow 
the houses to run just as cold as possible in the early 
part of February, and later. It will not injure the 
plants late in the season to occasionally allow a little 
frost to get in. This will hold back the -flowers and 
will give more returns as the season advances. In 
March or April, if the weather is mild, the doors and 
ventilators should be open at all times in order to 
get plenty of fresh air. If this practice is not fol- 
lowed the growth will be so rapid that blossoming 
will soon cease and there will be no flowers for 
Easter. 

One of the chief reasons why it is diflicult for 
a grower to handle violets in connection with other 
crops is the failure to furnish proper temperature 
and ventilation for the violets. The tendency in such 
cases is always to give too much heat, and this, more 
than anything else, will soon manifest itself in the 
appearance of small, poorly colored flowers. 

The same care given in the houses must be ob- 
served where frames are used. Plants in a frame 
will burn up on a bright day unless air is properly 
g"iven. Watch the conditions carefully and give air 



TEMPERATURE. I37 

when the plants need it. Often it will only be nec- 
essary to raise one frame in five an inch or two in 
the back. Then, again, it may be necessary to raise 
all three or four inches to keep the plants from suf- 
fering. On mild days in winter it will improve the 
plants to occasionally take the frames entirely off, 
allowing the air to dry out the soil and the sun to 
warm it. Snow must be removed as soon as possi- 
ble, but it often happens that a good coating of snow 
will save the plants from freezing. If it promises to 
be very cold after a snow, it is best to leave the lat- 
ter on for twenty-four or even for forty-eight hours. 
If left longer than this the plants may sufTer for 
want of light. 

It may be of interest to give in tabulated form 
the temperature records of a violet house for five 
months of the winter period. These records, which 
were made for the writer by Mr. Geo. Saltford, of 
Poughkeepsie, New York, show the highest, lowest 
and average temperatures recorded during the day 
and also during the night in his houses. A study of 
the records will be of value to those who desire to 
keep their houses in the proper condition so far as 
temperature is concerned. Although made at Pough- 
keepsie, the records are applicable to most sections 
where violets are grown. 



138 



TEMPERATURE AND VENTILATION. 



Record of Night and Day Temperatures and Sunshine 
for five months. 

DECEMBER, 1895. 





Night temperature. 


Day temperature. 


Sunshine 




Degrees F. 


Degrees F. 




Date. 


Readings at 7 a.m 


Readings at 7 p.m. 


(10 equals 


Dec, 1895. 






sunshine 
all day, 8 
















equals 8-10 




Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


of day,etc.) 


13 


46 


35 


40 


68 


54 


61 


8 


14 


47 


42 


44 


64 


39 


51 


10 


15 


47 


42 


44 


65 


44 


54 


7 


16 


48 


44 


4b 


64 


43 


53 


10 


17 


48 


41 


44 


64 


44 


54 


10 


18 


52 


43 


42 


62 


46 


54 


5 


19 


53 


46 


49 


68 


46 


57 


10 


20 


58 


46 


52 


72 


52 


62 


7 


21 


5^ 


53 


55 


65 


53 


59 


4 


22 


60 


45 


54 


66 


44 


55 


9 


23 


54 


48 


51 


65 


50 


57 


6 


24 


60 


46 


53 


70 


47 


58 


9 


25 


54 


50 


52 


59 


50 


54 


7 


26 


55 


49 


52 ^ 


62 


52 


57 


4 


27 


57 


44 


50 


67 


46 


5b 


10 


2-. 


47 


42 


44 


60 


42 


51 


10 


29 


52 


44 


48 


56 


43 


49 


7 


30 


so 


40 


45 


51 


43 


47 


00 


31 


60 


42 


51 


55 


44 


49 


10 


Average, 
or mean.,. 


53 


44 


48 


63 


46 


55 





TEMPERATURE. 
JANUARY, 1896. 



139 





Night temperature. 


Day temperature. 


Sunshine. 




Degrees F. 


Degrees F. 




Date. 
Jan., i8q6. 


Readings at 7 a.m. 


Readings at 7 P.M. 


(10 equals 
sunshine 






all day, 8 
















equals 8-10 




Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


of day,etc.) 


1 


45 


40 


42 


58 


42 


50 


10 


2 


46 


40 


43 


61 


44 


52 


9 


3 


47 


44 


45 


71 


46 


58 


9 


4 


46 


38 


42 


60 


40 


50 


10 


5 


41 


34 


37 


63 


33 


48 


10 


6 


40 


31 


35 


64 


44 


54 


10 


7 


45 


38 


41 


49 


41 


45 


00 


8 


46 


38 


42 


61 


38 


49 


10 


Q 


47 


30 


42 


47 


41 


44 


00 


10 


44 


40 


42 


61 


41 


51 


8 


11 


47 


40 


43 


67 


47 


57 


00 


12 


47 


42 


44 


50 


47 


48 


10 


13 


47 


41 


44 


58 


39 


48 


10 


14 


47 


39 


43 


58 


39 


48 


10 


15 


47 


35 


41 


68 


36 


52 


10 


16 


46 


36 


41 


61 


41 


51 


10 


17 


4b 


38 


41 


59 


47 


53 


8 


18 


45 


39 


42 


66 


39 


52 


10 


19 


48 


44 


46 


55 


42 


48 


00 


20 


^3 


40 


41 


6r 


40 


50 


5 


21 


47 


40 


43 


56 


41 


48 


00 


22 


47 


40 


43 


63 


41 


52 


5 


23 


44 


41 


42 


58 


41 


49 


7 


24 


46 


41 


43 


49 


40 


44 


00 


25 


47 


46 


46 


49 


46 


47 


00 


26 


48 


45 


46 


55 


45 


50 


2 


27 


45 


41 


43 


66 


39 


52 


10 


28 


45 


38 


41 


56 


39 


47 


10 


29 


44 


36 


40 


65 


36 


50 


10 


30 


45 


40 


42 


66 


45 


55 


10 


31 


45 


38 


41 


66 


39 


52 


9 


Average, 
or mean... 


46 


39 


42 


59 


41 


50 





140 TEMPERATURE AND VENTILATION. 

FEBRUARY, 1896. 



HP 


Night temperature. 


Day temperature. 


Sunshine. 




Degrees F. 


Degrees F. 




Date. 


Readings at 7 a.m. 


Readings at 7 P.M. 


(10 equals 


Feb., 1896. 






sunshine 
all day, 8 
















equals 8-10 




Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


of day, etc.) 


I 


45 


42 


43 


55 


42 


48 


00 


2 


50 


40 


45 


69 


45 


57 


10 


3 


46 


38 


42 


53 


39 


46 


00 


4 


45 


42 


43 


52 


42 


47 


00 


5 


45 


42 


43 


57 


44 


50 


00 


6 


49 


46 


47 


56 


47 


51 


00 


7 


46 


42 


44 


59 


45 


52 


2 


8 


45 


42 


43 


71 


44 


57 


10 


9 


46 


41 


43 


44 


42 


43 


00 


10 


44 


38 


41 


70 


41 


55 


10 


II 


44 


38 


4^ 


56 


39 


47 


10 


12 


42 


38 


40 


65 


42 


53 


10 


13 


46 


42 


44 


47 


42 


44 


00 


14 


47 


38 


42 


57 


39 


48 


10 


15 


47 


40 


43 


56 


42 


49 


10 


16 


49 


38 


43 


62 


38 


50 


10 


17 


42 


35 


38 


63 


37 


50 


10 


18 


42 


34 


38 


67 


42 


54 • 


10 


19 


47 


39 


43 


54 


39 


46 


7 


20 


44 


37 


40 


57 


37 


47 


10 


21 


44 


37 


40 


62 


37 


49 


10 


22 


45 


39 


42 


62 


42 


52 


10 


23 


45 


37 


41 


60 


45 


52 


5 


24 


46 


41 


43 


63 


43 


53 


10 


25 


47 


39 


43 


62 


40 


51 


10 


26 


44 


39 


41 


55 


41 


48 


CO 


27 


44 


40 


42 


65 


40 


52 


10 


28 


44 


40 


42 


60 


41 


50 


4 


29 


51 


44 


47 


51 


49 


50 


CO 


Average, 
or mean... 


46 


40 


43 


59 


42 


50 





TEMPERATURE. 
MARCH, 1896. 



141 





Night temperature. 


Day temperature. 


Sunshine. 




Degrees F. 


Degrees F. 




Date. 
Mar., 1896. 


Readings at 7 a.m. 


Readings at 7 P.M. 


(10 equals 
sunshine 
all day, 8 






1 








equals 8-10 




Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


of day, etc.) 


I 


51 


47 


49 


62 


44 


53 


00 


2 


51 


44 


47 


67 


42 


54 


5 


3 


43 


39 


41 


62 


39 


50 


7 


4 


44 


38 


41 


63 


36 


49 


10 


5 


45 


38 


41 


67 


43 


55 


10 


6 


44 


37 


40 


71 


38 


54 


10 


7 


51 


44 


47 


64 


44 


54 


5 


8 ■ 


50 


41 


45 


59 


39 


49 


9 


9 


45 


38 


41 


64 


39 


51 


5 


10 


44 


39 


41 


55 


40 


47 


5 


II 


43 


39 


41 


47 


41 


44 


00 


12 


44 


39 


41 


51 


40 


45 


4 


13 


42 


36 


39 


62 


38 


50 


10 


14 


37 


34 


35 


67 


41 


54 


10 


15 


48 


38 


43 


61 


36 


48 


5 


16 


45 


39 


42 


56 


41 


48 


00 


17 


44 


41 


42 


61 


43 


52 


10 


18 


43 


34 


38 


60 


42 


51 


10 


TQ 


45 


38 


41 


61 


41 


51 


00 


20 


54 


42 


48 


57 


40 


48 


10 


21 


42 


33 


40 


60 


39 


49 


10 


22 


41 


37 


39 


67 


41 


54 


9 


23 


45 


35 


40 


57 


38 


48 


2 


24 


44 


35 


39 


64 


37 


50 


10 


25 


44 


38 


41 


67 


40 


53 


10 


26 


51 


40 


45 


67 


48 


57 


10 


27 


47 


36 


41 


58 


40 


49 


10 


28 


49 


39 


44 


64 


42 


53 


ro 


29 


47 


40 


43 


53 


44 


48 


00 


30 


47 


44 


45 


67 


44 


55 


5 


31 


49 


44 


46 


80 


47 


63 


10 


Average, 
or mean... 


46 


39 


42 


62 


41 


5i 





142 TEMPERATURE AND VENTILATION. 

APRIL, 1896. 





Night temperaiure. 


Day temperature. 


Sunshine. 




Degrees F. 


Degrees F. 




Date. 


Readings at 7 a.m. 


Readings at 7 P.M. 


(10 equals 


April, 1896 






sunshine 
all day, 8 
















equals '8-10 
ofday.etc.) 




Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


Max. 


Min. 


Mean. 


I 


51 


39 


45 


60 


47 


53 


7 


2 


47 


42 


44 


54 


40 


47 


I 


3 


41 


35 


38 


67 


38, 


52 


5 


4 


42 


36 


39 


55 


41 


48 


10 


5 


49 


37 


43 


69 


42 


55 


10 


6 


47 


46 


46 


57 


41 


49 


5 


7 


44 


39 


41 


57 


40 


4& 


00 


8 


43 


39 


41 


65 


42 


53 


10 


9 


44 


37 


40 


47 


45 


46 


10 


10 


50 


42 


46 


68 


44 


56 


10 


II 


50 


39 


44 


70 


50 


60 


8 


12 


51 


49 


50 


79 


51 


65 


9 


13 


50 


44 


47 


84 


50 


67 


9 


14 


60 


49 


54 


85 


60 


72 


10 


15 


67 


58 


62 


93 


65 


79 


10 


16 


70 


59 


64 


103 


69 


86 


10 


17 


69 


61 


65 


85 


64 


74 


9 


18 


72 


64 


68 


103 


72 


87 


9 


19 


71 


61 


66 


92 


70 


81 


10 


20 


74 


64 


69 


94 


73 


83 


10 


21 


72 


63 


67 


91 


70 


80 


4 


22 


69 


60 


64 


70 


43 


56 


8 


23 


47 


35 


41 


80 


57 


68 


10 


24 


60 


41 


50 


85 


59 


72 


9 


25 


54 


42 


48 


65 


54 


59 


5 


26 


55 


41 


48 


67 


53 


60 


10 


27 


58 


42 


50 


73 


58 


65 


10 


28 


59 


40 


49 


79 


60 


69 


5 


29 


64 


45 


54 


85 


65 


75 


9 


30 


57 


43 


50 


84 


58 


71 


10 


Average, 
















or mean... 


56 


46 


51 


76 


54 


65 





TEMPERATURE. 



143 



December 
January . . 
February . 
March . . 

April . . . 



Averag-e Temperatures. 

Ni?ht, Day. 

48 55 Degrees F. 

. •• 42 50 

42 50 

. . . . ... 42 51 

51 65 



144 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 



CHAPTER VII, 



HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP» 

It must be borne in mind that to grow good 
flowers is not the only requirement for success. Af- 
ter the flowers are grown they must be marketed, and 
to do this successfully is one of the most important 
matters with which we have to deal. Success in 
this particular respect is, in large measure, depend- 
ent upon the character and temperament of the man. 
Some men may be excellent growers and yet so lack- 
ing in personality and adaptability that they cannot 
deal with their customers in a satisfactory manner 
for any length of time. It is very often the case that 
such men blame everything but the right thing for 
their inability to get along and for the trouble they 
have, not only with the dealers that handle their 
stock, but with the men who work for them as well. 
There is little hope for such people until they can be 
broupfht to a realization of the fact that the difficulty 
is in themselves and not in the things around them. 
Learn, therefore, to adapt yourself to the conditions 
as you find them, and things will go much easier 
than when you attempt to mold all conditions to your 
way of thinking. 



MARKETING THE CROP. I45 

At the outset it is necessary to study the needs 
of your market and try to meet them as fuhy as 
possible. When you start you wiU doubtless be a 
stranger — at least you will be regarded as such from 
a business point of view, for business is not prone 
to recognize sentiment in any of its dealings. You 
will therefore have to establish your ability to grow 
good stock, to grow it regularly, and to be able to 
put it into the hands of your dealer when he wants it. 
This cannot be done in one or two years, but at the 
end of three or four seasons, if the work has been 
carried on in the right way, your reputation will 
have a fair start. 

It is perfectly feasible for a grower who knows 
his conditions and handles his plants properly, to tell 
by the first of October how many flowers he can 
furnish for the following six months ; that is, he 
ought to know within two or three per cent, how 
many flowers he will have for October, November, 
December, and each succeeding month through 
March. Knowing this, he is in a position to deal in 
a business-like way with the man or men who handle 
his flowers, for it is as important for the dealer to 
know, to a reasonable certainty, what he can depend 
upon, as it is for. the grower to know what he can 
furnish. Much of the complaint which arises about 
poor prices being received for flowers is not because 
the flowers are not good, but it is on account of the 
spasmodic way in which they are sent in, and the 





43. — Violets bunched for Philadelphia market, some of the 
/lowers projecting from the hunch. 



MARKETING. I47 

fact that they have to take their chances with a great 
mass of stock of this kind. From the last purchaser 
or consumer to the grower there is a direct connec- 
tion in this matter. Even though flowers are a lux- 
ury, customers soon learn where the supply is steady 
and the quality high. They recognize this, and are 
willing to pay for it. The dealer, in time, knows the 
growers he can depend upon, and can afford to pay 
them a higher price for their stock than the men 
who can give no reliable assurance as to what they 
can furnish from one week to another. It is this 
very fact that emphasizes the importance of growing 
the plants in houses, for if they are in frames a 
snow storm or cold snap may close up everything for 
a week or more, and in the meantime the demand in 
the city has not diminished in the least. 

Outside of what has been said, however, there 
are many details that influence the success of dis- 
posing of stock. Every market has its peculiarities, 
and these must be studied and pandered to. We 
cannot point out these conditions, for they vary so 
much, and change so often, that the matter is one 
that will have to be taken in hand by the grower 
himself. 

The methods of bunching, arranging of the 
leaves, and other matters all vary in different sec- 
tions, and we can only describe some of the more 
important ones here. Before proceeding to do this, 
however, it would be well to consider more in detail 




44. — Violets hunched for Washington market, vising Princess 
of Wales leaves. 



MARKETING. 149 

some of the methods of disposing of the flowers. 
The grower may sell his flowers direct to the retailer, 
or he may dispose of them through the commission 
merchant. Each plan has its advantages and disad- 
vantages, and these we shall now point out. No one 
questions the fact that there are plenty of honest, 
straightforward business men in both lines. There 
are frauds, of course, but we meet them everywhere, 
and as soon as one is found out he should be dropped. 
The retailer pays for the flowers outright, and un- 
less the grower is in a position to demand something 
better he will get just half the retail price for his 
stock ; that is, if violets are selling at two dollars per 
bunch of fifty flowers, the grower will get one dollar ; 
if they are. selling for one dollar, he will get fifty 
cents. This seems .like a big margin of profit for 
the retailer, but in reality the risks are so many that 
it is about all he can afford to pay to the grower 
who cannot count on what he can furnish in the way 
of quantity or quality. On the other hand, the grower 
who conducts his business in the proper way can 
make up his schedule of prices at the beginning of 
the season, and the retailer, knowing his man, and 
that he can depend upon him, can afford to pay him 
more. In fact, the prices in such cases should, and 
will, run from twenty to twenty-five per cent, higher 
than in the first plan described. On the other hand, 
the grower who sells to the retailer has no opportu- 
nity as a grower to enlarge his reputation, for the 



150 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 

purchaser seldom knows who grows the stock. The 
fact is that a large portion of the purchasers have 
the innocent delusion that the retailer himself grows 
all the stock he sells. The grower, therefore, has no 
way of extending his reputation, and if anything 
should happen to the retailer who handles his flowers 
he will have to start over again with a new man, 
which is a thing not always easy to do. Again, the 
retailer must necessarily be more exacting in his de- 
mands. He has orders to fill at all times of the day, 
and every day in the week, and the grower must 
always be willing and ready to fill such orders. 

In selling through commission merchants the 
stock is put in competition with others, and its mer- 
its will always tell in the hands of a fair merchant — 
the only kind it pays to deal with. It is true that a 
commission must be paid, but where this is done, and 
the flowers are put up and delivered properly and m 
good shape, the net returns will equal those from the 
retailer. In selling through the commission mer- 
chant the grower has practically unlimited opportu- 
nity for extending his reputation. Every shipment 
should indicate plainly who the grower is, and the 
retailers, who are constantly on the lookout for good 
material, soon learn where they can get it, and will 
pay for it accordingly. Furthermore, the grower in 
such cases can manage his business so as to pick his 
flowers at regular times, and all of the work about 
the place can therefore be put on a more systematic 



PICKING. 151 

basis. Where a grower is so situated that he can 
reach several good markets within one to eight hours, 
it would be best to combine the two plans, as may 
frequently be done. The nearest market, which he 
could reach daily perhaps in person, might be given 
up to dealing with the retailer, while the commission 
merchant could be used in the more distant markets. 
It is seldom desirable to sell to more than one re- 
tailer in a city, for if you have good stock, and your 
merchant is doing the proper amount of business, he 
can handle without difficulty all you can supply. He 
will furthermore do it better and more to your ad- 
vantage than if you attempt to divide up your stock 
among several retailers. All these matters and many 
others will have to be studied by each individual, and 
if done intelligently the best and most profitable 
methods will soon be learned. 

Coming now more particularly to the details of 
handling the crop, it must be understood that in addi- 
tion to being put up in an attractive manner, the 
violet, to sell at the best price, must have other quali- 
ties. The stems must be long, and the flowers of a 
good color, large, and — most important of all — they 
must be sweet. A violet zmthout szveetness is not 
zmnted anyzvhere, and a failure to recognize this 
leads to more trouble than any other one thing con- 
nected zvith the zvork. Violets, properly grown, are 
always sweet, but all the delicious odor may be lost 
through improper handling. The flower loses its 



152 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 

odor rapidly as soon as it is removed from the plant, 
and the quicker it reaches the retailer's hands the 
sweeter it will be. Long-distance shipments, there- 
fore, are never satisfactory, for by the time the flow- 
ers reach their destination they have lost nearly all 
their odor. Ten to thirteen hours from the time of 
picking until the market is reached is practically the 
limit as far as relates to holding the sweetness of 
the flower. It is unwise, therefore, to pick the after- 
noon of one day, and after holding the flowers over 
night, ship the following morning. It is best, when- 
ever possible, to have the flowers picked early in 
the morning and reach market the same morning, 
or not later than the middle of the same afternoon. 
If picked late in the afternoon they should be shipped 
that night so as to be in the market early the next 
morning. 

The best times for picking are early in the morn- 
ing and late in the afternoon, that is, between six and 
eight o'clock in the morning and four and six o'clock 
in the afternoon. Different plans are adopted in 
picking and bunching. As a rule, fifty flowers are 
put in a bunch, and the bunch is then backed up 
with from twenty to twenty-five leaves and tied with 
violet-colored cord. It is customary in most estab- 
lishments to do this work directly in the beds. One 
or two men pick and tie the flowers temporarily in 
bunches of fifty. Another — more expert in shaping 
the bunches — unfastens the temporary tie, and, after 



PICKING. 153 

arranging the flowers in symmetrical and compact 
form, picks and adds the leaves, and the . bunch is 
thentied permanently. After tying, the bunches- are 
placed in pans of water six inches deep, with cross- 
bars of laths or other strips to hold the flowers and 
leaves out of the water. Placed in water in this 
way the flowers soon stiffen up, and, if kept cool, they 
lose little of their odor. 

Another method, and one we prefer to follow, is 
to pick the flowers and tie them roughly in bunches 
of one hundred. They are then carried immediately 
to a cool bunching room and placed in water. When 
all is ready they can be bunched by experienced hands 
and rapidly sorted at the same time. Working in 
this way two men can pick and bunch from a thou- 
sand to twelve hundred an hour. This does not mean 
merely throwing the flowers together and tying them 
with a string, but it involves the exercise of taste and 
judgment in having a symmetrical, yet compact, 
bunch tastefully surrounded by leaves arranged so as 
to present a neat margin of green. The question of 
bunching is an important one — so important, in fact, 
that it often makes a big difference in the price ob- 
tained for the flowers. A little time spent in any of 
our wholesale markets shows this fact strikingly. 
Good flowers will come in poorly bunched, and with 
a few little straggling yellow leaves sticking out from 
the center. Such flowers, although good in them- 
selves, are apt to bring fifty per cent less than those 



154 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 



pLi 


m 




i m 


m wm 




^w^-i 


^^ 


pi 


Smpll 


^^ 


H 


L 


n 


*m 




\ 




:k^^^N|^H| 




'T-' 


. .w» %'«lK»^^k^^^l^ 



BUNCHING. 155 

from another source tastefully and attractively put 
up and properly packed. Once in a while, too, in 
careless bunching, a faded or dirty flower is put in. 
This invariably spoils the bunch, and is very apt to 
knock off profits on the whole shipment. It would 
pay many growers who complain of poor prices to 
make weekly visits to their markets, and if they are 
at all alert they will soon learn that the trouble is 
not all with the much-abused commission man. So 
important is the matter of bunching that the grower 
himself ought to personally attend to it, or at least 
see that every bunch receives his rigid inspection 
before it goes out of his hands. 

It is customary, in shipping, to pack either in 
return or gift boxes. Here, also, great care must be 
exercised to make the packages attractive, both on 
the outside and inside. The more common practice 
is to use return wooden boxes with hinged lids, each 
box holding from a thousand to one thousand five 
hundred flowers. The bunches, as they are taken 
from the water, have the stems wrapped in soft tissue 
paper. The stems are then dipped in water again 
and the bunches packed closely in the box, stems 
down. When properly packed the flowers should 
not shake or mash. Finally the boxes are sealed 
and are labeled with the grower's name and address. 

Before beginning the packing the boxes are lined 
with newspapers, with oiled paper next to the flow- 
ers. In winter great care has to be exercised to keep 



156 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 




46. — Leaves of California violet wired together 
for bunching £owers. 



PACKING THE FLOWERS. 1 57 

the flowers from freezing. It is often necessary to 
line the boxes with six or seven thicknesses of news- 
paper in order to keep out frost. In some cases felt 
is used, but newspapers, being always at hand, are 
more convenient, and besides are just as serviceable, 
and in some respects more desirable. 

In some cases a plan of packing flowers in wood- 
en boxes provided with trays is followed. Such trays 
are made about two inches deep, and have wire net- 
ting on the bottom. The mesh of the netting must 
be of suflicient size to allow the stems to project 
through. These make excellent shipping boxes, and 
by arranging two trays in a box, from one thousand 
to twelve hundred flowers can be shipped in one 
package. The same precautions to prevent frost in- 
juries must, of course, be exercised in this case. 

At this point it is well to emphasize the fact that 
no matter by what railroad the flowers are shipped, 
extra precautions must be taken to keep out frost. 
Although the packages may start out in a well-heated 
car, it is always difficult to foresee what will happen 
to them before they reach their destination. It is, 
therefore, necessary to keep a close watch on weather 
conditions, and make the packing in accordance with 
what the best judgment is in regard to the likelihood 
of a cold snap. 

Another very satisfactory means of packing 
flowers has been recently devised by Mr. P. H. Dor- 
sett. Instead of the wooden boxes he uses ordinary 



158 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 

leatherette telescopes, which he has made to order. 
These are eighteen inches long, ten inches wide, and 
seven inches deep. The cover fits over the inside 
box, and the whole is fastened by a strap at each 
end. A handle is put on the top so that the package 
is very easily looked after by the expressmen and 
others who have to handle it. A wire frame is made 




47. — Leatherette shipping box, open. 

to fit inside the box, the meshes of the wire being 
about half an inch square. Ten holes are cut in the 
wire, each two inches square, to take the bunches of 
violets. The frame is made seventeen inches long, 
nine inches wide, and four inches deep. The stems 
of the bunches are inserted into the holes and the 
five hundred flowers packed neatly into the box. 



PACKING THE FLOWERS. 



159 



These packages save considerable expense in express 
charges. They are, of course, returned, and with 
good usage will probably last for several seasons. 
The cost of these telescopes, complete, including 
wire, is about two dollars each. 

In cold weather, a second covering, which slips 
over the entire box, is used. In addition to this, 
quilts of cotton batting are used, so that there is 




48. — Shipping box, showing wire screen for 
holding bunches. 

about an inch of frostproof material protecting the 
flowers. As in other cases, the stems of the violets 
are wrapped in moist tissue paper and a layer of oiled 
paper, which is put into the box before the flowers 
are inserted, keeps in the moisture and odor. It has 
been found by experience that such packages are 
handled more gently by expressmen, and the flowers. 



l60 HANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 

in all cases, reach their destination in excellent shape. 
Once in a while some are lost through frost, but this 
seldom occurs except through the carelessness of 
the railroad people. 

The gift boxes, which are not returned to the 
grower, are usually made of three-eighth-inch pine. 




49. — Shipping box, closed and strapped. 

They are deep enough for the bunches in an upright 
position, and hold from eight hundred to one thou- 
sand flowers. After being packed and carefully 
nailed, they are wrapped with newspapers or other 
coverings to exclude the frost. These boxes have 
some advantages, but they also have many disad- 
vantages, chief of which may be mentioned the fact 



SELLING THE FLOWERS. l6l 

that the violets in them never make as good a show- 
ing as where they are in neat packages, such as al- 
ready described. 

Where the market can be easily reached, it is, 
of course, not necessary to exercise the precautions 
above mentioned in getting the flowers to their des- 
tination. In many cases it is practicable for the 
grower to take his stock to market in a wagon or to 
send or take it by train. This is especially the case 
when dealing with the retailer, and in such instances 
it is necessary only to see that the flowers are kept 
from frost and from being unnecessarily shaken or 
jarred. It is always best, however, to wrap the stems 
in moist paper, as it has been found by experience 
that by doing this the flowers are kept fresh and 
sweet much longer than they otherwise could be. 
We cannot emphasise too strongly the importance of 
studying the markets. You must knozv what is zvant- 
ed, and keep fully posted upon every detail in order 
to command the best prices. 

One feature of marketing violets may be cited 
here as a suggestion. It is given as a suggestion for 
the reason that so far as we know it has never been 
attempted in practice. There seems to be no reason 
why it would not be profitable to start what could be 
called a violet store in almost every city of fifty thou- 
sand or more inhabitants. In such cases it might 
not be necessary to use an entire storeroom for the 
purpose. Some of the large business houses might 



1 62 PIANDLING AND MARKETING THE CROP. 

furnish the desired space, or else room could be pro- 
cured in other ways. It would, of course, be im- 
portant to be located in a good business section, the 
idea being to devote the entire work to the sale of 
violets, retail and wholesale. By exercising the 
proper taste in fitting up such a place, taking advan- 
tage of all new ideas in the matter of decorations, 
boxes, ribbons, etc., there seems to be no reason why 
such an establishment would not prove profitable. 
It should be the aim of the proprietor of such a place, 
of cotirse, to not only pander to the wants of custo- 
mers, but to build up and make fads himself. 

Throughout the entire work every precaution 
must be taken to keep the flowers away from all for- 
eign odors. A new pine box, for instance, may cause 
trouble. Any objectionable odor, in fact, either in 
the box, the paper, or the room where the work is 
carried on, is apt to be taken up by the flowers and 
to destroy their sweetness. 



DISEASES AND THEIR TREATMENT. 163 



CHAPTER VIII. 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

No hard and fast lines can be drawn between 
diseases proper and insect attacks. Strictly speaking, 
a disease is any derangement of the functions of the 
plant, be it caused by fungous attacks, insect injuries, 
environment, or a combination of all. For conven- 
ience, we may discuss the subject under two heads, 
(i) diseases and their treatment, (2) insect enemies 
and methods of combating them. 

DISEASES AND THEIR TREATMENT. 

Probably no other subject connected with violet 
growing has been so much discussed as the diseases. 
This is nothing more than might be expected, for the 
final effects of all proper or improper methods of 
cultivation are manifested either in the form of 
health or disease. The plant, in other words, is 
largely what the grower makes it, and if he thor- 
oughly understood his work there would be little 
need for writing this chapter. This is equivalent to 
saying that the question is largely one of knowing 
how to make the conditions or environment so nearly 
perfect as to preclude the possibility of disease. It 



164 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

must be understood, of course, that we are dealing 
with plants in a different way from what they are as 
we find them in the open air, where they are depend- 
ent on water, air, heat and light as furnished by 
nature. Under glass, man can not only do much to- 
ward getting just the plant he wants for the condi- 
tions he has, but can approach the problem from 
another direction and provide the conditions best for 
his plant. Let us make this point perfectly plain, for 
few growers appreciate it or realize the real power 
behind it. Theoretically it will be understood that 
if the needs of the plant and the environment were 
exactly balanced, perfect growth would result. Go- 
ing farther, it will be seen that if just the right con- 
ditions could be furnished at all times, and the plant, 
through its adaptability, were able to meet them ex- 
actly, growth would not only be perfect, but life itself 
would be continuous. We cannot, of course, reach 
this ideal, but we can strive to approximate it, and 
this is the gist of all that we have said in previous 
chapters on soil, watering, feeding, propagation, se- 
lection, etc. ; so that when it really comes to discuss- 
ing the diseases there is little additional to say, ex- 
cept to describe the way the plant behaves when 
diseased, and to point out the best line of action in 
order to once again restore the equilibrium existing 
between the plant on the one hand and its envi- 
ronment on the other. 

The really important diseases of the violet are 



SPOT, OR SPOT DISEASE. 1 65 

comparatively few in number, and in the order of the 
injuries they produce they may be given as follows: 
(i) spot, or spot disease; (2) wilt, or stem rot; (3) 
nanism, or stuntedness ; (4) scald, or edge burn ; (5) 
oedema, or wart disease; (6) crown rot; (7) root 
galls, and (8) bud nematodes. 

Spot, Of Spot Disease* This is usually referred 
to as "the violet disease," and is recognized by grow- 
ers generally as the most serious enemy with which 
they have to deal. Much has been written about it, 
and many theories have been advanced as to its cause. 
There is no question that spot can be produced in 
many ways, and may result from the attacks of a 
number of different fungi. The true spot disease, 
however (the one which under certain conditions 
may sweep away an entire field or house of plants in 
a few weeks), has always associated with it a spe- 
cific fungus. The fungus is found wherever there 
is true spot, and the spot occurs in this country 
wherever the violet is grown. There can be no 
doubt as to the relation of this fungus to the disease, 
for time and time again the connection has been 
proved by careful scientific experiments. The fun- 
gus itself is a species of Alternaria,'^ and can be 
grown, watched, and handled as readily as the violet 
plant upon which it lives. The writer has never seen 



* See Spot Disease of the Violet, Bulletin No. 23, Division of 
Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, U. S. Dept. of Agricul- 
ture, p. II. 



i66 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 



a house, a frame, or a field where this fungus was not 
present, and plants have been examined from Mas- 
sachusetts to California. Often spotted leaves are 
found on which even the microscope fails to reveal 




50.— Spot disease. Early effects on foliage. 

the presence of the ftmgus externally. If these leaves 
are placed in moist air for twenty-four hours, how- 
ever, an abundant crop of reproductive bodies will 
be found on the diseased areas. 



SPOT, OR SPOT DISEASE. 1 67 

The effects of spot are so well known as to re- 
quire but little description to recognize them. The 
first effects, however, are usually overlooked, and it 
is really after the plant has in a measure succeeded 
in protecting itself that the attention of the grower 
is called to the injuries. Ordinarily the first indi- 
cation of a serious attack in a house or in a field is 
a peculiar odor wholly indescribable, but which, once 
experienced, will never be forgotten. It is sickening, 
and can be approximated by putting a lot of violet 
leaves in water, placing them in a warm room, and 
allowing them to wilt. 

An examination of the leaves when this odor 
is first noticed will reveal numerous greenish water- 
soaked spots, varying in size from a pin head to the 
blunt end of a lead pencil. There may be only one 
or two such spots on a leaf ; then again the whole 
leaf and plant may be peppered. This is spot, and 
two or three badly affected plants in a house will 
make themselves known to the trained nostrils. Early 
in the morning, before the ventilators are raised, is 
the time to catch the odor, or else at night, after 
everything has quieted down. As the spots enlarge, 
the central portion retains at first a pale greenish yel- 
low color, soon becoming a pale buff, with a more or 
less distinct margin of umber. Surrounding this is 
a ring retaining some of the pale yellow green, but 
almost transparent. Immediately around this is a 
ring of a green slightly paler than the surrounding 



1 68 DISEASES 



AND INSECT ENEMIES. 




51. — Spot disease on hardy English violets. 



SPOT^ OR SPOT DISEASES. l6g 

portion of the leaf, but appearing darker when held 
between the observer and the light. 

Usually, when the spots have reached this stage, 
the semi-transparent ring either becomes transpar- 
ent, in which case the marginal ring almost disap- 
pears, or else loses all its green, remaining a pale 
buff and retaining its marginal ring. Often several 
adjacent spots unite and form larger ones, but the 
centers of the uniting spots always remain distinct. 
Spots which have become entirely transparent ex- 
cept at the center may be included in the enlarging 
spots, remaining visible as transparent areas in the 
large buff spot. From the appearance of the small, 
sunken areas in the center of the spots many erro- 
neous views as to the relation of insects to the dis- 
ease have arisen. 

A few days of damp, cloudy weather will cause 
the development of reproductive bodies upon many 
of the spots. These appear to the naked eye as in- 
numerable blackish, tiny, hair-like points. Each spot 
is capable of producing thousands of the spores, and 
each spore is able, under the proper conditions, to 
germinate and grow, and in so doing infect a healthy 
leaf or a healthy portion of the same leaf. The 
spores, as a matter of fact, are wafted about in the 
air, and are constantly settling down on the plants, 
where they only await favorable conditions to grow 
into the leaf and produce other spots. We have made 
experiments which show that in ten hours of one 



170 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 



night, under ordinary conditions existing in a green- 
house, fifty to sixty of these spores will settle on a 
space three inches in diameter. Every spore is able 
to produce a spot, and the only reason that they do 




52. — Spot disease artificially produced. 

not do so is probably because the conditions are un- 
favorable for development. 

It is evident from what has been said that the 



SPOT^ OR SPOT DISEASES. I7T 

more spotted leaves there are in a house the more 
chances there are for infection. Here, therefore, is 
one of the most important points in keeping the dis- 
ease in check. Every spot must be removed and 
burned as soon as it is seen, and in no case must the 
diseased leaves be thrown into the walk or behind 
the pipes to rot and spread the fungus. When a leaf 
is badly affected it is best to remove it entirely, but 
when there are only a few spots on a leaf, these can 
be pinched or cut out and the rest of the leaf saved. 

It is folly to postpone this work, for every day 
adds to the chances against getting the disease under 
control. We do not advocate the application of any 
fungicide. We have tried many things, including 
Bordeaux mixture, lime, sulphur, ammoniacal solu- 
tion of copper carbonate, etc., but have never yet 
found any good evidence that they are beneficial. 

In addition to the strictest attention in keeping 
the plants clean, no effort should be spared to furnish 
the best conditions for growth. Attend rigidly to 
watering, ventilating and firing. Keep all water from 
the foliage, for wherever the leaves stay wet for sev- 
enteen to twenty hours successively, spot is pretty 
sure to develop. From the twentieth of August until 
the twentieth of November is the period in which 
spot is most to be feared and watched. If the plants 
can be successfully brought through this period they 
are practically safe, unless unusual conditions arise. 

From what has been said it will be seen how 



172 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

important it is to have the plants where they will at 
all times be under control. In frames and in fields, 
this is practically impossible, as there they are con- 
stantly exposed to rain and dew. Much benefit may 
be derived, however, by shading the plants in some 
way. Rain does not seem to give as much trouble 
as dew. This is probably owing to the fact that rain 
washes the spores from the leaves before they have 
an opportunity to germinate, while in the case of dew 
the moisture comes on so gradually that the very best 
conditions are furnished for the germination and 
development of the fungus. A shading of laths, or 
a screen of any kind, will often be sufficient to pro- 
tect the plants from dew, and thus in a measure ward 
off the spot. However, it is of the highest import- 
ance that the plants be under cover as soon after the 
middle of August as possible ; for wherever they are 
left outside the danger from infection is very much 
increased. 

Everything that has a tendency to weaken the 
foliage must be avoided. Too much fertilizer will 
often cause a tender growth of leaves, and when in 
such condition spot is very apt to appear if several 
days of warm, cloudy weather come on. One of the 
greatest sources of injury is tobacco in the form of 
smoke. Many growers use tobacco for combating 
insects, but in our experience it is found very danger- 
ous, and apt to cause serious trouble. The nicotine 
in the tobacco has the power of weakening the tis- 



SPOT, OR SPOT DISEASE. 1 73 

sues to such an extent that the spot fungus finds it 
an easy matter to infect the foHage. A Hght fumi- 
gation seldom produces any injury, but where several 
fumigations are made in close succession damage is 
almost sure to result. Spraying the leaves with to- 
bacco water is apt to produce similar effects, and for 
this reason we have abandoned the use of tobacco 
entirely. 

Much evidence could be adduced to show the 
deleterious action of tobacco, but it is not necessary 
to go into details upon this matter, as one or two 
examples will suffice. In one instance green aphis 
was causing considerable trouble in our houses, and 
in order to destroy it we fumigated heavily with 
tobacco for two or three nights. Immediately fol- 
lowing the fumigation spot appeared to an alarming 
extent, and it required several months of hard work 
and extra precautions to get rid of it. We did not 
realize at the time the connection of the fumigation 
with the trouble, but afterward it was brought to 
our attention in a number of other ways, and has 
been proved many times since. 

Finally, it may be said that if careful attention 
has been given to cultural work throughout the entire 
season, little trouble need be apprehended from this 
disease. It is only where the grower has been care- 
less in certain directions that trouble is likely to 
ensue. Many have the unfortunate habit of neglect- 
ing little details here and there, and then when the 



174 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

disease appears making a gigantic effort to get rid 
of it. If attention had been given to minor matters 
throughout the entire season the chances are that 
the disease would not have appeared, and that there 
would have been no serious loss in consequence. 
When the disease has reached a severe form, the 
flowers are practically worthless, and the only thing 
that can be done is to put forth every effort to get the 
plants into a healthy condition as soon as possible. 
Briefly, therefore : Keep the plants at all times in a 
healthy growing condition. Rigidly destroy all dis- 
eased parts of the plant. Never apply water to the 
leaves in such a way that they cannot dry in from 
four to live hours. Keep the leaves free from dew. 
Avoid fumigation with tobacco, hut if tobacco is used 
make the smoke as light as possible. 

Wilt, Of Stem Rot* Next in importance to 
spot is wilt, or stem rot. In fact, in many sections 
the stem rot causes more trouble than the spot. The 
disease is, as a rule, confined to the stems, although 
it frequently attacks the roots, but it never produces 
the injury there that it does when the stems are 
affected. We have rarely seen a plant wholly free 
from this trouble, although in many instances it does 
not produce any appreciable injury. This disease 
is also due to a fungus, which lives in the tissues, 
and about which comparatively little is known. So 
far, we know it chiefly through its effects, and there 
can be no doubt as to the relation of the particular 



WILT, OR STEM ROT. 



175 



Species to the disease in question. The fungus is 
known as Thielama hasicola Zopf, and it attacks 




53. — Rooted Campbell cuttings, showing- effects of Thielavia 
on the roots. Plant on left diseased, plant on right healthy. 

Other plants besides the violet. It undoubtedly is able 
to live at certain times on decaying organic matter; 



176 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

in fact, it is found in portions of leaves, straw, and 
otiier materials occurring in the sand and soil. From 
the fact that it occurs on bits of decaying leaves it 
is important to have the propagating sand absolutely 
free from organic matter. Infection in a great many 
cases takes place in the propagating bed and soil. 
The cutting may root readily, and to the casual ob- 
server may appear sound, but it is infected, never- 
theless, and later on will show the trouble. 

Plants affected with this disease may make a 
good growth throughout the summer and show no 
evidence of trouble until September, or perhaps Oc- 
tober, when they will wilt more or less during the 
warmer portions of the day, and revive during the 
night. This may go on for a week or more, but 
finally they wilt completely and die. An examination 
of such plants shows that the main stem has been 
practically girdled by the fungus, and that both the 
water and the food supply have thereby been effectu- 
ally cut off. The alternate wilting and reviving of 
the plants is due to the fact that the fungus does 
its work slowly, and thus it requires considerable 
time to completely encircle the stem. The fact of 
the matter is, a plant of this kind is probably infected 
early in its life, and for months the fungus slowly 
grows, gradually destroying cell after cell, until 
finally the plant collapses. 

Unquestionably another fruitful source of in- 
fection comes about through the practice of pulling 



WILT, OR STEM ROT. 1^7 

off partly decayed leaves from the young plants as 
they are growing. It is, of course, necessary to keep 
the plants clean, but in all cases a knife should be 
used for trimming both leaves and cuttings. If a leaf 
is pulled off it frequently leaves a scar on the stem, 
and this scar offers an excellent opening for the fun- 
gus, which is likely to be present in the soil or on 
decaying bits of organic matter surrounding the 
plant. If the leaf is cut off, leaving a short stem, 
the wound heals before the fungus has an opportu- 
nity to gain entrance. 

The method of propagation has an important 
bearing on the trouble, and for this reason we have 
been profuse in our statements regarding the import- 
ance of using only vigorous stock. The practice of 
dividing the plants carries some of the disease over 
each year, and it will be seen that if this is kept up 
it is only a question of time when the stock will be- 
come so weakened as to be practically worthless. 
The advantage of rooting cuttings in sand that is 
absolutely clean is also apparent, for in such cases 
the fungus, which might be in the young roots taken 
from the soil, is eliminated. Where the plants are 
simply divided, and even where they are removed as 
offshoots early in the spring, the young roots often 
show the disease. The difficulty, however, is most 
serious where the fungus has attacked the stem, for 
in such cases the plant will eventually succumb. 
When a rootlet is once affected it may be destroyed 



178 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

and still the working of the plant need not neces- 
sarily be seriously interfered with. Continuous use 
of the same soil is also a fruitful source of propa- 
gating the disease. The longer the soil is used, 01 
course, the more decaying roots there will be pres- 
ent, and the more chances for infection through such 
material. 

Summarizing, therefore, the principal ways of 
holding this disease in check are careful attention to 
the propagation of stock, extreme care as to the kind 
of sand and soil employed, and the exercise of rigid 
precautions in the matter of examination of plants 
before they are finally set in the beds. 

Nanism, or Stuntedness* The dwarfing and 
stunting of a plant is not generally looked upon as a 
disease. Nevertheless, so far as we are concerned, 
it is a true disease, because it has a marked effect in 
reducing the income. It is not uncommon to find 
among a number of violet plants some which show 
quite different characters from the ordinary, so far as 
size is concerned. In such cases the whole plant is 
more or less dwarfed. The leaves are small, the leaf 
stalks are short, and the offshoots which go to 
make up the crown are also short. When such a 
plant blooms the flower stalks are also short, and 
the flowers, in most cases, are small. Of course, this 
dwarfing or stuntedness varies much in degree. Some 
plants will not be more than one-fourth the normal 
size, while there will be all grades between this and 



NANISM, OR STUNTEDNESS. 



179 



where the dwarfing is so shght as to be hardly rec- 
ognizable. An examination of such plants reveals 
the fact that no external agencies in the nature of 
fungi or insects have caused the trouble. The roots 




54.— Plants stunted by strong fertilizer. 

appear to be free from organisms of all kinds, and 
the stems and leaves are also free, except in some 
cases where red spider may be present, but not in 



l8o DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

sufficient quantity to account for the dwarfed growth 
of the plants. 

This dwarfing or stunting may be brought 
about by a number of causes. Anything in fact which 
has a tendency to check growth may result in per- 
manent dwarfing, but it is particularly at the time 
when the plant is young that injury is likely to 
occur. It sometimes happens that the cuttings when 
taken from the parent plant are not fully mature, 
and if rooted in sand or soil at this time they will 
never make as strong or vigorous plants as those 
made from fully ripened wood. Again, the wood 
may become so hard that its growth is to a certain 
extent fixed. Such a cutting would also be apt 
to produce a dwarfed plant, for the reason that the 
check which it has received can never be entirely 
overcome. On the other hand, the wood may be of 
the proper nature, and the cutting, in all other re- 
spects, good, and yet in handling after it is separated 
from the parent plant, certain checks may be brought 
about which will result in permanent injury and a 
dwarfed or stunted plant. Too much or too little 
water in the propagating bed may bring about these 
results. Lack of water is often a fruitful source of 
mjury in this connection. The plants do not neces- 
sarily have to be dried out to such an extent that 
they wilt, but the gradual withholding of a sufficient 
amount of water has a tendency to cause all the 
growing cells to assume a fixed form, and from this 



NANISM, OR STUNTEDNESS l8l 

they never recover, even after they are moved into 
more favorable conditions. After the plants are 
rooted, furthermore, injuries of the same kind may 
occur. 

It may happen that in planting, warm weather 
comes on, and as a result it is difficult to keep the 
plants supplied with a sufficient amount of moisture, 
and the roots, in consequence, will be injured. This 
results finally in a permanent check, from which the 
plant never fully recovers. Furthermore, if plants 
are exposed to too much bright sunlight they are apt 
to become stunted on account of the intensity of both 
heat and light. This shows the necessity of some 
kind of shade through the growing season, for the 
violet naturally does not grow in the open, but, as 
a rule, is found in shady, moist places, away from 
the dire effects of the sun. 

From what has been said in regard to the cause 
of the trouble, the means of preventing it will be- 
come apparent. Every eifort should be put forth to 
keep the plant in a thoroughly healthy grozmng con- 
dition from the time it is started until it is thrown 
out in the spring. No checks of any kind should be 
allowed, for the more there are of these the more 
likely is the output of flowers to be reduced. This 
only emphasizes the statement already made, that 
diseases are largely the result of improper methods 
of culture and the overlooking of important facts in 
regard to handling the plants. 



l82 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

Scald, ot Edge Burn* This disease, as a rule, 
is not serious, although under certain conditions it 
may become quite troublesome and materially affect 
the yield of flowers. It manifests itself first by the 
edges of the leaves turning a yellowish green. A few 




55. — Edge burn, brought on by cold soil. 

days later this color may gradually fade out to almost 
white, and eventually the entire edge of the leaf will 
become a papery whitish color. The trouble is usu- 
ally confined to a rim running around the outer edge 
of the leaf. This rim varies in width from one- 
sixteenth to one-quarter of an inch. Under excep- 
tional circumstances nearly the entire leaf may be 
involved, and there is then left only a small green 
area in the center. Once the injury is done there 
is, of course, no remedy, and all efforts should be 



SCALD, OR EDGE BURN. 183 

made to keep the plants in such a condition that the 
trouble cannot be brought on. 

One serious after effect of the difficulty is the 
liability of the plant to be attacked by a number of 
species of fungi. Although fungi are not the direct 
cause of the trouble, there are many species which 
will attack partly dead tissues and from them extend 
into the healthy parts of the leaf. It is not uncom- 
mon, therefore, to find plants affected with this scald, 
or edge burn, collapsing from the effects of fungi 
which have first attacked the diseased portions and 
through them have gained sufficient strength to de- 
stroy the unaffected parts of the leaves. 

A species of Botrytis is very apt to work on such 
affected parts, especially if the weather is damp and 
the sun does not shine for several days in succession. 
The tissues, in such cases, get soft and slimy, and it 
is very difficult to keep the plants clean. 

The trouble may be brought on by a number of 
causes. It is often the result of using strong liquid 
manure, either organic or in the form of chemical 
fertilizers. Such liquids, when applied to the soil 
and roots, seem to temporarily check the latter to 
such an extent that they cannot take up water or 
food. In case the sun is warm at such times, and 
the light bright, the young and tender portions of 
the leaves, namely, the edges, will not have sufficient 
moisture to serve for growth. If these conditions 
continue, the moisture stored in the cells is used up, 




56.— Leaves and Bowers injured by Botrytis. 



SCALD, OR EDGE BURN. 185 

and then the latter collapse as a result. The disease 
may be brought on by allowing the soil to get too 
cold. It is quite common to see plants next to the 
outer walls of the house showing this difficulty. This 
is especially the case where there is no air space 
between the bed proper and the outer wall. The cold 
from the outside is sufficient to stop the proper work- 
ing of the roots, and in consequence the parts of the 
plant above ground suffer as described. 

In certain types of heavy soils, that is, soils 
containing too much water, the trouble is likely to 
occur. It must be understood that the roots of plants 
require air as well as water. If all or nearly all the 
air spaces in the soil are filled up with water the roots 
will sufifocate and the plants, in consequence, suffer. 
The difficulties resulting from cold soil can easily be 
overcome, for the reason that it is rarely found except 
around the edges of the house. A board set in so as 
to intervene between the wall and the soil outside is 
often sufficient to prevent the trouble. It is better, 
however, to have two boards, with a space of four 
or five inches between. This allows an air space, 
and the air in the house is sufficiently warm to keep 
the soil in the beds next to the board warm enough 
for root growth. 

By attending to the conditions mentioned, look- 
ing carefully after watering, and seeing that the soil 
is not too heavy, little trouble need be feared from 
this disease. 



l86 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

Oedema, or Wart Disease* This trouble often 
proves quite serious, but is easily kept under control 
by the proper handling of the plants. The affected 
plants show wart-like growths over the leaves, and 
these are usually of a brownish color. These warty 
growths vary in size, some of them being quite small 
and others one-eighth of an inch long and one- 
sixteenth of an inch high. The corky growths are 
not confined wholly to the leaves. In fact, they fre- 
quently occur on the leaf stalks, and sometimes on 
the flower stalks also. It is found that where these 
warty formations are developed the whole leaf is in 
a peculiar condition. It is brittle, and when taken 
in the hand cracks very easily. The leaves, in other 
words, instead of having a live, elastic feel, appear 
to the touch to be dry like a shaving, and when bent 
will break with a cracking noise. Wherever a break 
of this kind occurs the corky growth appears in time. 
The corky formations may also develop wherever an 
insect punctures the leaves. The punctures of aphides 
and the bites of spiders cause many of these swell- 
ings. When the plants get into this condition it is 
practically unfit for flowering, and when badly dis- 
eased it is very difficult to ever get it into proper 
shape again. The trouble is one that is brought on 
gradually by improper relations between the moisture 
of the soil, moisture of the air, and the light. 

Where plants are mulched and the soil kept con- 
stantly wet the trouble is likely to follow, especially 



OEDEMA^ OR WART DISEASE. 1 87 

if heavy shading is adopted. Where the plant is 
grown for some time under these conditions all of 
its tissues get into a dropsical or oedemic state, and 
it needs only an injury of some kind to cause the 




57.— Oedema, or wart disease. 

formation of the wart-like growths. If the condi- 
tions are very favorable, injuries are not necessary 
for the wart-like growths, as they will be produced 



I8« DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

by the plant without intervention of anything of this 
kind. This is due to the fact that the plant is really 
making an abnormal effort at growth, and the warts 
are nothing more than excessive growth of the cells 
at particular points. This trouble seldom occurs in 
houses properly lighted and ventilated. In under- 
ground pits, and in outdoor frames where heavy 
shading is used, it is apt to occur, especially if the 
practice of mulching is adopted. 

By paying proper attention to light, ventilation, 
and watering, little or no difficulty is experienced 
from the trouble. In case it is seen that plants are 
becoming oedemic it will be necessary to modify at 
once the surroundings to such an extent as to admit 
more light to the leaves and more air to the soil. It 
will not do, however, to bring about these changes 
too rapidly. Light should be gradually given, and 
the amount of water added to the soil should be 
slowly diminished. If the change is too abrupt, se- 
rious consequences may result, as the plant, having 
been grown under such abnormal conditions, is not 
able to withstand the unusual exposure to bright 
light and dry soil which the sudden change might 
bring about. 

Crown Rot. This trouble is very apt to 
occur after the opening of the blooming season, espe- 
cially if the crowns are heavy and too much water 
is used for syringing or for other purposes. It is 
often found in houses made of sash, where the drips 



CROWN ROT. 



189 



keep the crowns of the plant constantly wet for days 
at a tmie. In such cases the inner or youngest leaves 
of the crown become softened, and through the ac- 




58. — Crown rot. 



tion of several species of fungi are in a short time 
reduced to a soft, slimy mass. 

The trouble is sometimes c^uite serious, as all 



IQO DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

the young inner growth is destroyed and the flower 
buds, of course, perish with them. The difficulty, 
as already pointed out, is brought about largely by 
the improper use of water. Of course, in houses 
where there are many drips it is impossible to keep 
the crowns dry. As soon as the trouble is noticed, 
however, the diseased leaves should be cleaned out 
as rapidly as possible, the remaining leaves pushed 
apart, and the crowns opened so as to admit light 
and air. Where the crowns are very heavy some 
advantage may result by trimming out part of the 
leaves, but this, of course, will more or less inter- 
fere with the flowering of the plant. 

A mixture of equal parts of air-slacked Hme and 
flowers of sulphur is frequently beneficial in cases 
of this kind. The two materials should be thor- 
oughly mixed and thrown into the crown with con- 
siderable force so as to reach the rotting parts. Lime 
alone is beneficial, but the sulphur has a tendency to 
destroy the fungi present and in a measure to check 
the growth of other organisms. In properly con- 
structed houses, where the drip is reduced to a mini- 
mum, little difficulty is ever experienced from this 
disease. The trouble is, of course, much more apt 
to be serious where the plants are overgrown, and 
for this reason the directions given in regard to 
proper time of planting and the handling of the 
plants should be closely followed. 



ROOT GALLS. IQT 

Root Galls* Although this disease is caused 
by a minute parasitic worm, it is classified with dis- 
eases for the reason that it affects the entire plant, 
and could not be properly treated under the heading 
of insects. Plants badly infested with nematodes 
are apt to show a dwarfed growth, the leaves being 
small and the leaf stalks and flower stalks short. 
This is what might be expected from the fact that 
these minute parasites attack the roots, and, through 
their action on them, cut off the food supply. The 
infested plants, upon being removed from the soil, 
show on the rootlets innumerable small nodules, 
varying in size from a pin head to a large pea. 
Although nematodes are considered by some writers 
as a great menace to violet growing, we have never 
seen any serious injury produced by them. In fact, 
our experience leads us to believe that nematodes, 
instead of being actually injurious, are more apt to 
be beneficial. We cannot speak, of course, of the 
effects of nematodes where the soil has been allowed 
to become full of them through neglect and other 
causes. Where the soil has not been properly han- 
dled, or where it is allowed to remain in use for sev- 
eral years, nematodes are very apt to infest it to 
such an extent as to become a serious pest. Ordi- 
narily, however, where the soil is changed every 
year, and where new plants are put in each season, 
the nematodes are not sufiiciently numerous to prove 
really serious. It often happens that some of the 



192 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

best flowering plants will show quantities of nema- 
todes on the roots at the close of the season. So 
far as appearances go, such plants show no indication 
whatever of diseases, and if it were not for "the effect 




59— Root Galls. 

of the nematodes it is very probable that vegetative 
growth would have been so excessive as to have 
interfered seriously with the formation of flower 
buds. We look, therefore, on nematodes as in a 



ROOT GALLS. 



193 



measure being able to keep the proper balance be- 
tween root growth and leaf growth. They act partly 
as root pruners, so to speak, and by their action have 
a tendency to cause the plants to throw their energy 
toward flowering rather than toward leaf produc- 
tion. We would not have it inferred from this that 
we advocate encouraging the attacks of nematodes, 
but we do not believe it desirable to go to any great 
expense, such as steaming the soil, for the purpose 
of holding them in check. If the soil is properly 
handled, and allowed to freeze thoroughly once or 
twice in the early part of the season, a large num- 
ber of the. nematodes are probably destroyed. How- 
ever, no matter what action of this kind is taken there 
will always be some present, but they need not cause 
any serious uneasiness. 

We have experimented with sterilized soil and 
have been able to grow plants practically free from 
the worms. Such plants made a most remarkable 
growth and the leaf development was so great that 
it seriously interfered with the production of flowers. 
Furthermore, we found that the plants were making 
such rapid growth and were becoming so tender and 
soft at the approach of the spot season that great 
difficulty was experienced in warding off this disease. 
On the whole, this question may be summed up by 
saying that by proper attention to the care of the soil 
and of the plants little trouble need be apprehended 



194 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

from nematodes, and it will not be necessary to adopt 
the expensive method of sterilizing the soil. 

Bud Nematodes* Within the past three or 
four years a very serious disease has appeared in 
many parts of the country, affecting all kinds of 
violets, but particularly the double forms, and more 
especially the Lady Hume Campbell. The disease 
is one that has evidently been present for a number 
of years, but owing to its obscure nature and cause 
has been generally overlooked, the trouble being atj 
tributed to other causes in all probability. The dis- 
ease manifests itself by the gradual disappearance of 
the crown of the plant, and, of course, if no crowns 
are formed no flowers are produced. The plants "go 
blind," and although they make feeble growth, they 
are practically worthless. Frequently the disease is 
found in houses, affecting only a plant here and there. 
Then, again, it may be more or less common on all 
plants, affecting some, of course, more than others. 
It can be noticed on very young plants, even on cut- 
tings before they are well rooted. The disease is 
produced by a minute eel worm or nematode, similar 
to the one which causes the root galls. The life 
history of this small parasitic worm is not known. It 
is found abundantly in the young buds, and through 
its action on them causes the growing tip to abort, 
thus producing the so-called blind crowns. The 
disease seems to be more troublesome in the south- 
ern section of the violet-growing region. In the 



BUD NEMATODES. 195 

north, especially in the great violet-growing section 
of Poughkeepsie and Rhinebeck, it does not seem 
to have attracted very much attention. In the South, 
however, it is one of the worst enemies now con- 
fronting the violet grower, and every precaution 
should be taken to keep it in check. Experiments 
that have been made lead us to believe that very lit- 
tle benefit is to be derived from the application of 
any substance such as lime, sulphur, etc. The nema- 
tode is so thoroughly protected by the tissues of the 
leaf that it cannot be reached by any such treatment. 
Neither can it be affected by fumigations or by 
sprayings with liquids. Some success has been se- 
cured by the application of a weak solution of 
formalin or formaldehyde, but a continuous use of 
this preparation injures the crown so that the treat- 
ment may cause more trouble than the disease. The 
only suggestion that can be given at this time in 
the matter of treatment is to exercise most rigid 
care in making cuttings, and to see to it that no stock 
is taken from a diseased crown. It is best in all cases 
where the plants become diseased with nematodes 
to pull them out at once and burn them. This may 
seem like a hardship at first, but it is the only safe 
plan to follow. By constantly weeding out the dis- 
eased plants and carefully selecting the stock, it is 
believed practicable, in a measure, to keep the dis- 
ease in check. The necessity and importance for 
doing this will become apparent when it is known 



196 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

that evidence points strongly to the fact that the 
nematodes may be scattered from plant to plant by 
the hands, either while picking the flowers or clean- 
ing the plants. Attention has already been called, 
under the subject of propagation, to the method of 
taking plants which have already rooted from the 
crowns, and setting out such plants directly in soil. 
The Campbell has a habit of sending out roots from 
its side crowns to a greater extent than the Marie 
Louise, and there is some evidence to show that 
healthy crowns, selected in this way and planted 
directly in soil, are not so apt to become infested 
with nematodes as those taken off and rooted directly 
in sand. In all cases, however, it is essential to 
select only the healthy rooted cuttings, and to see 
to it that the roots are white and glossy and not 
infested with other diseases, such as the Thielavia, 
already described. 

INSECTS AND OTHER PESTS. 

Red Spiden This little pest, which is really 
not a spider but a mite, is one of the worst enemies 
with which violet growers have to deal. It is present 
at all seasons of the year and is ready at all times 
to begin its destructive work if allowed to do so. 
It is difficult to estimate the damage these mites do 
to plants, for the reason that it is seldom that any 
plants are entirely free from them, and no fair com- 
parisons can therefore be made. Ordinarily, when 
there are only a few of the mites present, the plants 



RED SPIDER. 197 

show no external evidence of their attacks. As the 
numbers increase, however, the leaves gradually be- 
come yellowish and dwarfed, and eventually the 
whole plant succumbs unless action is taken to rid 
it of the pest. 

Cuttings or young rooted plants are especially 
liable to be seriously injured by spider. This is par- 
ticularly true in spring after the growing season 
starts. The mites multiply rapidly at this time, and 
unless the plants are carefully watched they will soon 
be so badly infested that it will be exceedingly diffi- 
cult to restore them to a normal condition. In fact, 
it is questionable if a plant once badly infested with 
spiders can ever be restored to the normal state. 
The mites by their action slowly reduce vitality, and 
not only one, but all functions of the plant are prob- 
ably more or less affected by them. In this way the 
whole nature of the plant is more or less changed, 
as it is really suffering from a slow starvation. It 
will be seen, therefore, that the ultimate effects will 
be a checking or stunting of some kind, and, as 
already pointed out^ everything of this nature must 
be carefully avoided. 

On plants which have been grown the entire 
winter in a house, or even in frames, the mite some- 
times develops to such an extent in late spring as to 
entirely destroy all growth. Millions of spiders will 
be found on the foliage, and their webs, which are 
rarely seen under ordinary conditions, stretch from 



198 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 



plant to plant, and spiders of all sizes will be found 
passing rapidly over them and congregating in 
swarms like bees. 

An examination of the leaves of violets infested 




Fig. 60.— Red Spider. 

with spiders show mites of various sizes, and the 
eggs from which they are hatched will also be found 
present in varying numbers. Ordinarily, the eggs 
are spherical and almost colorless. Under a slight 



RED SPIDER. 



199 



magnification they appear like little globules of dew, 
but upon touching them they are found to have rela- 
tively firm walls. The eggs are not hatched for 
eight or ten days after being deposited, the length of 




61.— Nozzle used in spraying- plants for the destruction ot 
red spider. 

time depending in a large measure on warmth and 
other surroundings. When newly hatched the 
spiders are very light in color. In fact, it is difficult 



200 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

to distinguish them from the masses of web and the 
yellowish portions of the affected leaf. As the spiders 
grow older they molt several times, and finally attain 
full size, when their color is more or less yellowish 
red. The color, however, varies greatly, and it is 
seldom that any lots on two different plants are 
found to be exactly alike. 

The mites are exceedingly difficult to kill, and 
for this reason great care must be exercised in not 
allowing them to attain sufficient numbers to seri- 
ously check the growth of the plants before putting 
forth efforts to destroy them. It is the general be- 
lief among florists that spiders do not thrive in moist 
air, but this does not seem to be the case, for if proper 
conditions are present moist air alone is not suffi- 
cient to hold them in check. 

Tobacco, either in the form of smoke, or ap- 
plied in other ways, has little effect upon the mites 
themselves, and probably does not injure the eggs in 
the least. Fumigation, therefore, is useless in this 
connection. What is true of tobacco will also hold 
good with other poisonous gases, such as cyanide 
gas, which is now coming into general use for green- 
house work. When we first commenced using the 
cyanide gas we were hopeful that it would prove 
valuable in destroying spider. It is true that spiders 
subjected to the fumes of this gas are stupefied for 
a time, but they soon recover, and in a few hours 
are as active as ever. 



RED SPIDER. 201 

Soaps of all kinds are effective in destroying 
both old and young mites, and also kill a large pro- 
portion of the eggs. On account of the difficulties 
in using soap, however, it cannot be generally rec- 
ommended, but for certain purposes, which will be 
referred to later, it will be found very useful. 

Water applied to the foliage is the only effective 
remedy that can be depended upon for this pest. It 
must be applied, however, with considerable force, 
the object being to wash both mites and eggs from 
the leaves. To do this successfully, and at the same 
time not injure the plants and not bring about con- 
ditions favorable for other diseases, such as spot, is 
a difficult problem. The chief point in this work is 
to keep the spiders so thoroughly in check that by 
the time the plants have attained nearly their full 
growth in the fall, that is, by the middle of Septem- 
ber, spraying can be entirely stopped, and from that 
time on during the winter little or no water need 
be applied to the foliage. We have found that where 
spiders are washed from the leaves a certain per cent, 
of them get back. Many are killed by the direct 
crushing action of the water, and thousands not 
destroyed in this way are knocked off into the soil 
and probably starve to death before they can again 
reach food. From two to three per cent, of all mites 
on the leaves manage to get back, however, and this 
shows the importance and necessity of constant at- 
tention in the matter of spraying. 



202 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

If the young plants are perfectly free from 
spider when set out in the spring it is comparatively 
easy to keep them so by spraying from two to three 
times a Aveek for the rest of the growing season. 
How^ever, if cuttings are rather badly infested with 
spider, we recommend their treatment before plant- 
ing with a solution of soap. We have tried many 
soaps, but the best results have been obtained from 
Ivory soap, used at the rate of one five-cent cake 
to six or seven gallons of water. The soap should 
be shaved up with a small plane and dissolved with 
about one gallon of hot water, and then sufficient 
cold vvater added to make the quantity mentioned. 
By using a small hand spraying pump, which can 
readily be purchased in the market for four dollars 
and fifty cents to five dollars, the leaves can be thor- 
oughly wetted with the soap solution at a compara- 
tively slight expense in the matter of material. Five 
gallons, in fact, will be sufficient to treat three or 
four thousand cuttings, provided they are in fiats and 
are easily within reach. Allow the soap to remain 
on the plants two or three hours, then thoroughly 
syringe with clear water. This treatment should be 
repeated two or three times, until the spiders and 
eggs have been destroyed. When used in this way 
the soap has no deleterious effects on the plants and 
has a tendency to protect and clean the foliage much 
better than any preparation we have used. Tobacco 
w^ater is sometimes used for this purpose, and a to- 



RED SPIDER. 203 

bacco solution made from an extract is also applied. 
We do not recommend these preparations, however, 
because they have a tendency to weaken the foliage. 

It must be understood that it is not safe to use 
strong soaps, such as whale oil and soft soaps, be- 
cause they are very apt to injure the foliage and are 
not so active in killing the mites as the Ivory soap. 
Spiders treated with Ivory soap die in one or two 
minutes after the solution is applied. When viewed 
under a microscope, full-grown spiders show anx- 
iety to get rid of the soap as soon as it reaches them. 
This lasts only for a few seconds, however, and then 
the spider quickly folds its legs beneath itself and for 
a few seconds there may be some violent movements 
of the legs and other parts of the animal. Even if 
moved to fresh water a few minutes after soap is 
applied, they seldom revive, which shows how effec- 
tually the soap operates. 

For cuttings, therefore, the soap solution, as 
recommended, will be found exceedingly valuable. 
We do not consider it advisable to continue the ap- 
pHcation of soap throughout the entire season, for 
the reason that we believe it has a tendency to inter- 
fere with growth. After the plants are put out, 
however, spraying with water should be regularly 
practiced, as before described, and for this pur- 
pose it will be found desirable to devise some means 
of getting on the minimum amount of water with 
the maximum amount of force. It will require a 



204 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

pressure of at least twenty to twenty-five pounds to 
prove effective against spider. To get the water on, 
however, without drenching the beds, is often a 
rather difficult matter, and for this reason we have 
devised a simple spraying tip, which is found to 
answer the purpose admirably. This spraying tip 
may be attached to the end of a three-quarter-inch 
hose, or, where the beds are wide, we prefer to use 
a short lance made of light brass pipe. This lance 
is one-quarter inch in diameter and usually about 
two feet long. The spraying tip is fastened to one 
end, while the other end is provided with a connec- 
tion to screw on to the three-quarter-inch hose. The 
tip itself consists merely of a piece of brass flattened 
out at the end and provided with a narrow slit, 
through which the water is forced. This slit is so 
adjusted that the water issues through it in much 
the shape of a gas flame, but, of course, very much 
larger. At a distance of twenty to twenty-five inches 
from the end of the slit the water breaks up into 
innumerable fine drops, which are thoroughly effect- 
ive in washing the spiders from the leaves and not 
injuring the latter in the least. With a little practice 
the beds can be gone over quickly with this device, 
and the under side of the leaves may be so thor- 
oughly washed that the spiders will have little op- 
portunity for development. If this practice is fol- 
lowed throughout the growing season the plants will 
be able to go into winter quarters practically free 



APHIDES. 205 

from the pest, and will, therefore, require little 
additional work of this kind during the winter. 
Whenever it is necessary to spray during the winter, 
the work must be done on a bright day, so that the 
plants will dry off in a few hours. Never spray later 
than eleven o'clock, otherwise the crowns will remain 
wet during the night. 

Green and Brown Aphides^ Every violet 
grower is probably familiar with these insects. Up 
to six or eight years ago the green aphis was about 
the only one that ever proved troublesome. Whether 
there is more than one species of green aphis which 
attacks the violet is not known. They can be found 
nearly always, and it requires only slight neglect 
for them to soon become exceedingly troublesome. 
The green aphis, with which every grower is gen- 
erally familiar, attacks both leaves and flowers, 
but it is particularly the latter that are likely to 
show the most serious effects of the pest. Ordi- 
narily, when the leaves are infested the aphis is first 
found on leaves which have begun to fade. The 
yellow leaves harbor the insect, but it soon gains 
sufficient strength, if neglected, to spread to per- 
fectly healthy leaves and from them to the flowers. 
In watching plants for the green aphis, therefore, it 
is always best to keep a close eye on the yellowish 
leaves as they are picked off. If the green fly is 
found upon them immediate steps must be taken 



206 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES, 

to check it before it has increased sufficiently to 
spread to other parts of the plant. 

When the fresh and growing leaves become 
infested, and when it spreads to the .flowers and 
young buds, the matter becomes serious and heroic 
efforts will be required to get rid of the pest. It 
is when the insect turns its attention to the flower 
buds and flowers that the most serious trouble 
results. The aphis crawls into the very young buds 
and through its punctures and the sucking of the 
juice the flower is very much distorted and is made 
practically worthless. Two or three of these insects 
in a bud will so injure it that the flower will be 
valueless. When they occur in great numbers and 
the buds and flowers are badly infested the former 
have a speckled or spotted appearance quite unlike 
what they should be. Instead of the beautiful mauve 
color, the petals have whitish blotches scattered over 
them, and this detracts greatly from their appearance 
and makes them practically worthless so far as 
selling is concerned. 

Nine or ten years ago the brown aphis began 
to attract attention among violet growers. This 
insect is reddish brown in color and resembles 
somewhat the one which attacks the chrysanthemum. 
We first observed the insect seven or eight years 
ago on some plants obtained from Massachusetts. 
Soon after this we saw it in other localities, and 
now it seems to be pretty generally distributed 



APHIDES. 207 

throughout the violet growing regions of the East. 
This aphis seems to be a new form — at least no 
record can be found of anything like it attacking 
violets in this or other countries. Be this as it 
may, the effects of the insect are serious. In fact, 
it is a more formidable foe than the green one. 
Instead of attacking the older and more resistant 
leaves, the brown aphis as a rule will be found on 
the most tender growth just as it unfolds from the 
crown. In consequence of this habit of the insect 
the plants are severely crippled. The young leaves 
are attacked as fast as they appear, and the plants 
in consequence are so thoroughly checked and 
stunted that little or no growth takes place. It will 
be found at all seasons of the year, but is particularly 
active through the growing season, that is, from 
about the middle of May until the middle of October. 
It seems to be more troublesome in houses than in 
the open air or in frames, but this may be accounted 
for perhaps by the fact that the insect is less liable 
to the attacks of natural enemies under glass and 
has a better opportunity, therefore, of propagating 
itself. Like the green aphis, it also attacks the 
flowers, but seems to prefer the foliage, and as a rule 
is confined to it. Both the green and the brown 
aphis are more or less injured by cold, but still they 
cannot be entirely killed by freezing, as we have 
reason to know from experience in growing plants 
in frames, where the temperature fell as low as 



208 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

six or eight degrees below zero. In such cases many 
aphides were destroyed, but enough survived to 
start a new brood as soon as the weather became 
favorable. 

The almost universal remedy against aphides 
under, glass has, up to the past few years, been 




Fig. 62. — Brown aphis. 

tobacco. Fumigation has been the principal method 
followed, the ordinary tobacco stems being used 
for the purpose. Probably in some sections fumiga- 
tion with tobacco will continue to be used, as it is 



APHIDES. 209 

undoubtedly the simplest and cheapest method of 
combating these pests. 

We have already pointed out, however, the 
serious objections to the continued use of tobacco. 
This is especially the case in certain regions where 
the use of tobacco is more apt to bring on spot than 
in other sections. Where it is necessary to use 
tobacco, great care must be exercised, and the 
grower should never wait until the insects have 
accumulated in numbers ; otherwise, the smoke will 
have to be made so strong that injury to the plant 
in one form or another is sure to follow. Light 
fumigations, given at regular intervals, will prob- 
ably hold both kinds of aphides in check, but aside 
from the objections already mentioned there are 
others of a serious nature which must also be con- 
sidered where tobacco is used. As everyone knows, 
the odor is exceptionably disagreeable and unde- 
sirable. This is particularly the case in violets, 
which readily take up many foreign odors and never 
fully recover from the effects. It is therefore found 
undesirable to pick violets in a house which has 
recently been fumigated with tobacco. In fact, at 
least a week should elapse after fumigation before 
any picking is done. These reasons, together with 
others which have been given, have prompted us 
to practically abandon the use of tobacco in every 
form for aphides and insects of this nature. 

A good deal has been written about the use of 



210 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

hydrocyanic acid gas for this work. This has been 
used for a number of years in fumigating plants in 
the open air, but it is only recently that it has come 
into general use for greenhouse purposes. Through 
the efforts of Messrs. Albert F. Woods and P. H. 
Dorsett, who have been associated with the writer 
in work on plants under glass, experiments were 
inaugurated several years ago to test the value of 
this gas in the greenhouse. At this time we were 
having serious difficulty with our violets from the 
attacks of aphides, and it was a cjuestion as to 
whether it would not be necessary either to give up 
growing the crop or adopt some method of getting 
rid of the pests other than those usually followed. 
After many experiments it was found that the gas 
could be used with perfect safety for fumigating 
violets. Moreover, the flowers a few hours after 
the gas had been used were perfectly sweet and 
showed no effects whatever from the action of the 
gas. From time to time various changes were made 
as to the methods of application, until finally the 
practice has developed into a comparatively simple 
operation, which may be described as follows : 

In all cases where fumigation with this gas is 
to be followed it is necessary to first determine 
accurately the cubic contents of each house. The 
determination of the cubic contents of the house 
while in itself a comparatively simple problem, has, 
in the eyes of many growers, difficulties which they 



FUMIGATION WITH CYANIDE GAS. 211 

are not willing to undertake. The cubic contents 
can be determined by a comparatively simple mathe- 
matical calculation, but perhaps the easiest way is 
by a method recently described by the writer in the 
Florists' Exchange.'"^ This method involves nothing 
more difficult than the mere counting of a number 
of squares, and from an examination of the accom- 
panying illustration the simplicity of the method 
will become apparent. Procure from a stationery 
store or art supply store some cross-section paper, 
such as is represented in the figure. In this particu- 
lar case squares of three sizes are shown, the largest 
being one-half inch, the next one-fourth inch, and 
the smallest one-sixteenth inch square. The one- 
fourth inch squares may represent feet. Now 
determine the dimensions of the house, that is, the 
length, width, height to ridge, and height oh sides, 
and make a sketch as shown, each square, or one- 
fourth inch, representing one square foot. This 
particular house, it will be seen, is eighteen feet 
(eighteen squares) wide, twelve feet to the ridge, 
six and one-half feet high at the back, and four 
and one-half feet high in front. The ridge stands 
five feet from the back wall, as shown in the sketch. 
After the lines are drawn, simply count the squares 
inclosed, and the number of squares will be the 
number of square feet. The parts of squares, that 
is, where a line divides a square, can be easily 

Florists' Exchange^ Vol. II., No. 5. 



212 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 




FUMIGATION WITH CYANIDE GAS. 21 3 

determined by counting the smallest squares or by 
the eye, and by adding these fractions of squares 
together the number of whole squares may be readily 
found. After the number of square feet is obtained 
it is only necessary to multiply this by the length 
of the house in feet and the result will be the cubic 
contents. For example, supposing the house in 
question is one hundred feet long, it contains one 
hundred and fifty and one-half squares, or square 
feet, and one hundred and fifty and one-half multi- 
plied by one hundred equals 15,050 cubic feet. The 
whole operation requires less time than it takes to 
describe it and will apply of course to a house of 
any shape or size. It may be added that if the 
cross-section paper cannot be obtained readily the 
sections or squares can be laid off with a rule and 
lead pencil and practically the same results obtained. 
In any event, it is only necessary to get an accurate 
outline drawing of the section of the house and by 
projecting this over squares as indicated the number 
of square feet in the section can be readily deter- 
mined. 

The gas is made by combining potassium cyanide 
(ninety-eight per cent pure) and commercial sul- 
phuric acid. It has been found by experiment that 
for violets 0.15 of a gram (one gram equals fifteen 
and a half avoirdupois) of ninety-eight per cent 
cyanide of potassium will be required for each cubic 
foot of space in the house, and from these data it 



214 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

is easy to figure out the exact amount of cyanide 
of potassium wanted for a given amount of green- 
house room. When the cubic contents have been 
determined and 0.15 of a gram of the cyanide of 
potasssium has been weighed out for each cubic foot, 
the next step is to crush all the large lumps and 
place the cyanide in paper bags so as to have it 
ready for use in the house. We usually use two 
bags, one within the other, for the purpose, in order 
to insure perfect safety. For a house one hundred 
feet long and twelve feet wide there should be 
provided two ordinary earthenware jars, each 
holding about two gallons. These jars should be 
placed in the walk, about equal distances apart and 
equal distances from each end of the house. As 
soon as the proper quantities have been put in the 
bags, the latter are taken to the jars and then a 
string is arranged so that each jar will have sus- 
pended directly over it one of the bags containing 
the cyanide. The end of the string is then run out 
to the door and can be easily tied so as to hold the 
bags in position just above the jars. The string can 
be easily run through screw eyes fastened to the 
sash bars or by some other method which will 
readily suggest itself to the operator. Everything 
being in readiness pour enough cold water into the 
jars to about cover the amount of potash in the bags. 
As soon as the water is poured in bring the acid 
forward and slowly add this to the water until steam 



FUMIGATION WITH CYANIDE GAS. 21 5 

begins to rise. When the steam commences to show- 
stop pouring in the acid and arrange the next jar 
in the same way. While doing this it is best to have 
the bags of cyanide rest on the ground. The water 
and acid now being ready readjust the bags in their 
proper places so that they will drop directly into the 
jars when the string holding them is loosened. The 
operator now goes to the door and by taking hold of 
the string allows the bags to drop directly into the 
- jars. The door is then closed and in about a minute 
(sometimes less) the violent action of the chemical 
changes can be heard. No attempt whatever must 
be made to enter the houses at this time, for by 
doing so death zuould unquestionably result in a few 
seconds. Previous to setting off the gas all the 
ventilators must be put down, and if the house is 
loose it is well to sprinkle the roof with water. 
Arrangements must be made, however, for openmg 
some of the ventilators from the outside. From the 
time the gas begins to generate it should be allowed 
to remain twenty minutes in the house and then the 
doors and ventilators should be opened from the 
outside and air freely admitted. When opening the 
ventilators from the outside take care not to breathe 
the gas. The house should not be entered under any 
circumstances for half an hour, for it will take at least 
that time for the fumes to be driven out. 

Unless the aphides are very abundant it will not 
be necessary to use the gas more than once a month 



2l6 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

during the growing season. However, the fumiga- 
tion should not be done at regular periods, but 
should be carried on whenever there is sufficient 
evidence that aphides are increasing in undesirable 
numbers. This treatment never fails to do the 
work when proper care is taken, and there is no 
injury whatever to foliage or flowers. 

Cut Worms, The leaves of violets are some- 
times attacked and injured by cut worms. This 
is especially the case in late spring after the new 
plants have been put out. The cut worms, as a rule, 
are more troublesome in houses where sashes are 
removed or where the sides are open. There appear 
to be several species of these insects, and as the 
worms are voracious eaters, they can in a short time 
do considerable damage to small plants. It is not 
uncommon to find young plants having only six or 
eight good leaves completely cut down by these 
pests. Sometimes the worms instead of cutting off 
the leaves will cut ofif the stems, and of course in 
such cases the plant is ruined. The worms appear 
to be the same kind as those which feed upon 
grasses. In fact, where grass is allowed to grow 
around the houses and in the beds, the insects are, 
as a rule, much more apt to be troublesome. The 
worms are often found an inch and a half in length, 
and it is seldom that they can be seen on the plants 
in the day-time, unless in cloudy weather or in dark 
places. 



CUT WORMS. 217 

About all that can be done in the way of holding 
this pest in check is to watch the plants carefully, 
and at the first evidence of injury to search for the 
worms and destroy them. As a rule, if the worms 
are not found on the plant, they will be discovered 
just beneath the surface of the ground near the 
stem. By digging in the soil around the plants, the 
insect can be brought from its hiding place and 
destroyed. In closed houses, where fumigation is 
practiced, the cut worms are of course destroyed, 
but in the field and in frames the collection and 
destruction of the pest, as already stated, is about all 
that can be recommended. The fact that these 
worms live upon grasses shows the importance of 
keeping the beds perfectly clean, and also the im- 
portance of keeping the ground perfectly clean of 
grass for a considerable distance around the frames 
or the beds, if the latter are made in the field. So 
far as our observations go, the moth which deposits 
the eggs from which the cut worms are hatched 
seldom if ever selects the violet. The eggs are more 
likely to be deposited on grasses and other plants, 
and from these the worms reach the violet. It fre- 
quently happens that growers are neglectful about 
keeping old beds and the corners of houses free from 
weeds and grass. It is not uncommon to allow grass 
and weeds to grow up behind the beds in some cases, 
and it is just such places that harbor worms. Rigid 
attention should therefore be given to cleanliness. 



2l8 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

which is as important in this case as in any of the 
others mentioned. 

Sawfly* The leaves of violets during the 
growing season, that is, from June to September, 
are sometimes injured by a small caterpillar-like 
worm, which has been determined by the Entomolo- 
gist of the United States Department of Agriculture 
to be the larva of a species of sawfly. This insect 
sometimes does considerable damage by cutting the 
leaws, giving the whole plant a ragged appearance. 
The larva of the sawfly seems to prefer cool, shady 
places, and, as a rule, is found near the sides of the 
house or in the shade of the gutters. Picking and 
destroying the insects is the only satisfactory means 
of getting rid of them, except where fumigation 
with the cyanide gas is practiced. In such cases this 
insect, together with many other kinds, will be 
effectually destroyed. It sometimes happens that 
the eggs from which the sawfly larva are hatched 
are deposited on the young plants while they are 
still in flats or before they have been transplanted 
to permanent beds. It will often be found advan- 
tageous in such cases to apply some material that 
will destroy the eggs and young larvae before the 
plants are set where they are to stand. For this 
purpose there is nothing better than the Ivory soap 
solution, the same as recommended for red spider. 
It can be applied with a hand spraying pump, or 
the solution can be made up and kept in an ordinary 



GALLFLY MAGGOTS. 219 

water pail, and the plants as taken up can have their 
stems and leaves dipped. This, hov^ever, is not as 
satisfactory as spraying, and is resorted to usually 
only where cuttings are lifted directly from sand 
and there is no soil adhering. 

Gallfly Maggots. We have never had any 
difficulty with this pest, but in some sections of the 
country it has occasioned serious damage. The 
maggot is very small and is yellowish white in color. 
It is found as a rule in the youngest leaves as they 
push out from the crown of the plant. The affected 
leaves as they come out are badly curled and the 
maggots are found only where the leaf is curled. 
The maggots become so abundant that air the leaves 
become curled in this way, and as a result the whole 
plant is seriously stunted. 

The effects of the maggots are to seriously 
dwarf the growth of the plants and to practically 
stop the development of the flower buds. In many 
cases where the affected leaves are pulled off, the 
side crowns will start, but they soon become infested 
with the maggot. The maggot is the larva of a 
small gallfly, which looks like a miniature wasp. 
It is not uncommon to find maggots in the soil, and 
from the latter they seem to be able to reach the 
young leaves in some way. Whether they pass from 
the leaves to the soil and there attain the adult state 
we are not able to say, and so far as we know this 
point has not been determined. Our observations 



220 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 



lead us to believe that the pest is much more apt 
to occur in localities where proper attention has not 
been paid to mixing the soil and to drainage. On 
low, heavy, wet ground the pest is much more apt 
to be injurious than where good soil is at hand and 




Fig. 64.—Saw£y. 

where drainage is perfect. Certain kinds of manures 
seem to favor the development of the maggoit. 
Whether it is capable of living in the manure, or 
on plants alone, has not been determined, so far as 
we are aware. It seems to be a fact, however, that 



GALLFLY MAGGOTS. 



221 




&C 



222 



DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 



where manure is not clean, that is, where it is mixed 
with refuse in the shape of garbage and other 
material, the pest is apt to breed. 

There is no satisfactory remedy for this maggot 
when once it has infested a house. We cannot 




Fig. 66.—GalMy. 

speak as to the effect of cyanide gas upon it, for, so 
far as we know, this remedy has not been tried. It 
is not practicable to pick the leaves, because in such 
cases the crowns are permanently injured and the 



PHLYCTAENIA RUBIGALIS. 223 

flowering is therefore either entirely stopped or 
checked. Air-slacked lime thrown intO' the crown 
will be found beneficial. It should be thrown into 
the plant with considerable force and plenty should 
be allowed to reach the soil. Following this practice 
and giving the best cultural conditions possible, 
such as allowing plenty of air and stirring the soil, 
is about all that can be suggested in the line of 
treatment. 




67. — Larvse and moths of Phlyctaetiia rubigalis. 

Phlyctaenia rttbigfalis. Violet plants are some- 
times attacked during midsummer by the larva of 
a small moth. The insect has been identified for us 
by the Entomologist of the United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture under the above name. The 
larvae attack the leaves, destroying the softer parts 
and leaving only the skeleton or framework of the 
tissues. The illustration does not show this plainly, 



224 DISEASES AND INSECT ENEMIES. 

as the camera does not distinguish the colors suffi- 
ciently. Plants grown in shady places are usually 
most liable to attack. Generally the worms are 
surrounded by a light web, and occasionally two 
leaves are fastened together in order to give them 
protection. The insect never produces serious 
injury, but it is well to watch for it and take such 
steps to destroy it as may be practicable. It may be 
destroyed by picking the leaves containing the larvae, 
but by far the best method is fumigation with 
cyanide gas. Where this gas is used for other pests 
the insect in question is easily kept in check. 



COST OF PRODUCTION. 225 



CHAPTER IX. 



COST OF PRODUCTION AND PROFITS. 

In a matter of this kind it is difficult to give 
anything but approximate figures. Location, prox- 
imity to market, abiUty to get fuel, soil, and manure, 
the cost of labor, etc., are all factors that play an 
important part in making an estimate as to the actual 
cost of producing the crop. In making an estimate 
it will be necessary to take into consideration the 
value of the ground, the cost of houses, and in fact 
everything connected with the work, just as a com- 
mercial man would consider all phases of his busi- 
ness in any effort at determining profit and loss. 
It will be best to make the estimates on a definite 
number of plants, as it is easier to figure from this 
standpoint, as a matter of fact, that the cost of 
production will be relatively less for ten thousand 
plants than it is for five thousand. The same will 
hold true as we decrease the number of plants — that 
is, five thousand can be grown at relatively less cost 
than one thousand. There are a number of reasons 
for this, chief of which is the fact that the more 
plants there are the more possible it is for the 
grower to so arrange all of his operations as not to 



226 COST AND PROFITS. 

have a loss of material or time. For instance, it 
costs less relatively to heat houses holding ten 
thousand plants than it does to heat houses holding 
five thousand. The same will hold true for labor, 
for soil, for fertilizers, and in fact for all matters 
connected with the work. 

Under ordinary conditions, such as we find in 
the vicinity of many of our large cities, we may 
place the cost of ground and houses sufficient for 
ten thousand plants at three thousand dollars. In 
some respects this is an over-estimate, but it is based 
on the fact that ground used for this purpose is 
worth not less than five to seven hundred dollars an 
acre and that the houses are of the same kind as 
those we have already described. We have therefore 
to estimate as one of the items of the cost of produc- 
tion the interest on the money invested in houses, 
ground, and other fixtures connected with the work. 
We may put this as a total at three thousand five 
hundred dollars, so that the interest at six per cent 
would be two hundred and ten dollars. There is also 
to be considered the question of wear and tear on 
the houses and other materials used in connection 
with growing the plants. This may be placed at not 
less than eight per cent a year. In other words, 
renovating walks, replacing broken glass, painting, 
and other necessary repairs will cost not less than 
two hundred and eighty dollars a year. 



COST OF PRODUCTION. 227 

The cost of fuel will of course vary widely, but 
under ordinary conditions, that is, in regions where 
the temperature seldom goes lower than twelve 
degrees below zero for any length of time, the 
amount of fuel necessary to heat houses holding 
ten thousand plants will probably not exceed one 
hundred and twenty-five dollars. 

The cost of labor, not including that of the 
grower himself, which is not estimated here, should 
not exceed three hundred and fifty dollars per year. 
In other words, the grower himself with the assist- 
ance of one good man can easily handle ten thousand 
plants. It may be necessary to make some allowance 
for the busy season, when possibly an extra man 
would have to be taken on for a month. With the 
grower understanding his business it is not neces- 
sary to have an expert as an assistant. An ordinary 
laborer, provided he is quick, active, and willing to 
work, will answer every purpose. Such help can be 
obtained for twenty-five to thirty dollars per month. 
Labor, therefore, we estimate at three hundred and 
fifty dollars per year. For incidentals, including 
express charges and various minor matters, we 
estimate one hundred dollars. These figures will 
vary, of course, in different localities, but are, we 
believe, a fair average. 

Summarized, the total outlay for ten thousand 
plants per year is as follows : 



228 COST AND PROFITS. 

Interest on money invested in ground, houses, 

etc , $210 

Repairs 280 

Fuel 125 

Labor 350 

Incidentals 100 

Total $1,065 

The total output of .money per year, therefore, 
in growing ten thousand plants is estimated at one 
thousand and sixty-five dollars. This is an expendi- 
ture of practically ten cents per plant, so that the 
actual cost of maintaining and growing each plant, 
basing the estimate on ten thousand plants, is prac- 
tically ten cents. We have given what in our judg- 
ment is a fair average, but of course these figures 
can be reduced by rigid attention to details and a 
thorough knowledge of all the points necessarily 
connected with the work. If the owner is willing 
to take a hand and to attend largely to the firing 
and look after the watering and ventilation, the cost 
will be materially decreased. If, on the other hand, 
he delegates this work to others he must necessarily 
pay for it, and in consequence the cost of production 
will be increased. 

Turning our attention now to the other phase 
of the question, namely, the profits, we are con- 
fronted at the outset with the same difficulties as 
mentioned in the first instance — that is, the profits 
will depend in large measure on the market, on the 



COST OF PRODUCTION. 229 

ability of the man to properly handle his crop, and 
above all on the quality of the product. 

It must be understood that at first the grower 
will have to be content with relatively low prices, 
for the reason that he has yet to make a reputation, 
and until this is accomplished he may not hope to 
command from the market the highest returns. 
There is always an opening for good stock, but, as 
we have pointed out elsewhere, it is not only neces- 
sary to have the stock good, but it is of the highest 
importance that it should be so handled and so put 
on the market as to create a demand for it. As soon 
as the demand is created it is not so difficult to 
increase prices. 

As to the yield of flowers per plant, this will 
depend altogether on the knowledge of the grower. 
Ordinarily fifty flowers per plant is considered a 
good average, but there is no reason why this 
average should not be increased to seventy-five or 
even one hundred. The grower should not he content 
zmth less than one hundred salable flowers per plant, 
and his aim and effort should he to succeed in. mak- 
ing every plant average this numher. On the basis 
of fifty flowers per plant, however, the total yield 
from ten thousand plants would be five hundred 
thousand flowers. If the yield be increased to one 
hundred flowers per plant the total number of 
flowers is of course doubled. Now, this doubling 
of the total number of flowers does not mean the 



230 COST AND PROFITS. 

doubling of the cost of production at all. In fact, 
the cost of producing one hundred flowers per plant 
is relatively little more than producing fifty. The 
main additional item of cost to be considered is 
that connected with the handling of the crop, which 
is a relatively small amount. Let us assume, how- 
ever, that the grower averages fifty flowers per 
plant, and that he is so situated that the best prices 
he is able to command will not average over sixty 
cents per hundred for the season. This will mean 
that he receives approximately the following prices : 

October flowers $0.50 per hundred 

November flowers 0.50 per hundred 

December flowers i.oo per hundred 

January flowers 075 per hundred 

February flowers 0.50 per hundred 

March flowers 0.50 per hundred 

April flowers. 0.50 per hundred 

Average 0.60 per hundred 

The seven months, as already indicated, will 
give him an average of sixty cents, providing his 
plants yield as they ordinarily do — that is, a heavy 
flowering in November, March, and April, with 
lighter crops during the other months. If he can 
by a proper handling of his plants and by proper 
selection so change the flowering period as to get 
the heaviest yields during the months of December, 
January, and February, he can, as will readily be 
seen, increase his average, because the flowers will 
be worth more at this time. In other words, it is far 



I 



PRICES FOR FLOWERS. 23 1 

better to get fifty thousand flowers in December 
and twenty-five thousand in March than to get 
twenty-five thousand in December and fifty thousand 
in March. 

It is entirely within the range of possibihty to 
so grow the crop as to materially increase the num- 
ber of flowers during the regular winter months. 
The average of sixty cents is comparatively low 
and should not be considered as the limit by any 
means. With a reputation established for growing 
good flowers, and for putting them on the market 
in a fresh state and always in excellent condition, the 
range of prices can be materially increased. A good 
grower should not be content unless he can average 
the following: 

October flowers $0.50 per hundred 

November flowers 0.75 per hundred 

December flowers 1.50 per hundred 

January flowers 2.00 per hundred 

February flowers . 0.75 per hundred 

March flowers 0.50 per hundred 

April flowers 0.50 per hundred 

Average 0.90 per hundred 

This gives an average for the seven months of 
practically ninety cents, or an advance over the 
first figures of thirty cents per hundred. It is figures 
of this kind that show the possibilities within the 
reach of the intelligent grower. There is no reason 
why his flowers should not average him 90 cents, 
and furthermore there is no reason why each plant 



232 COST AND PROFITS. 

should not be grown so as to yield an average of 
one hundred flowers per plant. As an example 
of what may be accomplished we give the yields 
for eight months of fourteen hundred Lady Hume 
Campbell plants in one of our houses and the prices, 
as follows : 

Per 100. 

8,000 flowers $0.50 

11,950 flowers. 0.75 

12,000 flowers 1. 00 

11,830 flowers 1.25 

17,250 flowers 0.75 

23,900 flowers 0.75 

23,850 flowers 0.50 

3,800 flowers 0.50 



October, 


1897, 


November, 


1897. 


December, 


1897, 


January, 


1898, 


February, 


1898, 


March, 


1898, 


April, 


1898, 


May, 


1898, 



Total 112,580 Average .$6.75 

It will be seen that this house, containing 
fourteen hundred plants, yielded an average of 
eighty flowers per plant, and the average price 
received was seventy-five cents per hundred, so that 
the value of the yield of each plant was sixty cents. 

On the basis of an average of sixty cents per 
hundred, the total value of the yield from ten 
thousand plants would be three thousand dollars, or 
thirty cents per plant. We have already seen that 
the cost of producing such a plant is ten cents, so 
that the net profit is twenty cents per plant, or two 
thousand dollars for the establishment. On the other 
hand, if the average price obtained were ninety cents 



NET PROFITS. 233 

per hundred flowers, the net profit would be thirty- 
five cents per plant, or three thousand five hundred 
dollars for the establishment. Again, if the average 
yield is increased, as it should be, to seventy-five 
or one hundred flowers per plant, the profits will be 
increased approximately sixty-four and one hundred 
and twenty-eight per cent respectively. 

On the whole, it may be said that the income 
from ten thousand plants grown in houses and 
handled properly should year in and year out aver- 
age five thousand six hundred dollars, while the 
total expenses should not exceed one thousand five 
hundred dollars. This means an average yield of 
seventy-five flowers per plant, and an average price 
of seventy-five cents per hundred flowers. 

Violets can be grown in frames cheaper than 
they can in houses. With good care the total cost 
per plant will not exceed five cents, or ten cents per 
hundred for the flowers, reckoning that the average 
yield of the latter is fifty flowers per plant. Such 
flowers ought to net the grower fifty cents per 
hundred, leaving a profit over all expenses of forty 
cents per hundred or approximately four dollars per 
sash. Finally, it must be remembered that while 
these figures are fair averages, and are based on 
actual experiences, they cannot be approximated 
without strict attention to every detail. 



234 VIOLET GROWING FOR BEGINNERS. 



CHAPTER X. 



VIOLET GROWING FOR BEGINNERS. 

There have been many inquiries from persons 
who are desirous of embarking in violet culture and 
who wish to begin in a small way at first, partly to 
gain experience and partly to satisfy a love for the 
kind of work which violet growing involves. The 
chief points upon which information is desired are 
(i) the minimum number of plants required to 
make a successful start, (2) the source from which 
stock plants can be obtained, (3) the cheapest and 
best form of structure to use as a beginning, (4) the 
capital required to make a proper start and (5) the 
profit which might result, all things being con- 
sidered, from a specific investment. 

We believe that it is always the part of wisdom 
to start with enough plants to make it pay a dealer 
to handle the flowers from them. Of course a start 
can be made with one hundred plants, or even less, 
but the crop from this small number will be so 
irregular as to make it difficult to dispose of same, 
except at considerable sacrifice. With five hundred 
plants a fair start can be made, but it will be still 
better to secure not less than one thousand plants if 



STOCK PLANTS. 235 

room is available. It takes very little more time 
to grow one thousand plants than it does to grow 
five hundred, and the results are much more satis- 
factory. From one thousand plants, properly 
handled, a sufficient quantity of flowers can be picked 
regularly to warrant a dealer in handling them and 
to warrant him furthermore in giving a. little better 
price for the product than if the same were coming 
in at irregular intervals. 

Stock plants, or plants to start with, may be 
obtained from regular dealers who advertise in 
nearly all the floral papers. These advertisements 
will usually be found in the papers at the proper 
season for stock; that is, usually in the fall from 
October to December, and in the spring from Feb- 
ruary to May. An examination of any of the 
reputable florists' journals at this time will enable 
a person who is desirous of going into the business 
to get stock at very reasonable prices. It may be, 
of course, that stock can be obtained from some local 
grower, and if this is practicable it will be better 
than sending a distance for it, where the risk of 
injury by shipment must be considered. All of the 
suggestions in regard to stock, cuttings, etc., which 
have been offered in previous chapters, will apply 
here. It will be better in all cases to endeavor to 
get well-rooted sand cuttings rather than divided 
plants. The earlier the young plants can be ob- 
tained, other things being equal, the better. If they 



236 VIOLET GROWING FOR BEGINNERS. 

can be secured by the middle of February they may 
then be potted into two-inch pots and kept in a 
cold frame free from frost until the proper time 
for setting them out. These young plants are 
handled in just about the same manner as straw- 
berry plants. 

The stock being secured, the next point to con- 
sider is the form of structure to be used in growing 
the crop. Either cold frames or a cheap house will 
be suitable for the purpose, but for reasons which 
have been given in previous chapters, the house is 
preferable. However, if this cannot be erected the 
first year, frames may be used. It will not be neces- 
sary to secure the glass for the frames until autumn, 
when the plants are ready to be, covered. We have 
already described in detail the construction of frames 
and have shown that they can be erected complete, 
with mats for protection in winter, for about ninety 
cents per running foot or about eight cents per 
square foot of bed space, or four cents per plant; 
that is, if a person starts with five hundred plants it 
is safe to estimate that the cost of frames, including 
glass and mats, will be twenty dollars. If one 
thousand plants are to be grown, the cost, of course, 
will be just about double, or perhaps a little less, say 
thirty-five dollars. The disadvantages of frames 
have been mentioned, it having been pointed out 
that they are . unreliable and that even with close 
attention the plants in them are often frozen and 



CONSTRUCTION OF HOUSE. 237 

during cold weather it is impossible to pick flowers 
for days at a time. Furthermore, no one except the 
most robust can endure the exposure necessarily 
connected with the growing of plants in frames. On 
the other hand, a cheap house, properly constructed, 
is comfortable at all times, and is really a delightful 
place in which to work during the sunshiny days of 
winter, regardless of the weather. Such a house 
has already been described, and as pointed out, it 
can be erected for about three dollars and a quarter 
per runnning foot. A house suitable for holding 
one thousand plants, properly constructed, would 
cost about one hundred and fifty dollars. 

It might be well to describe somewhat more in 
detail a simple method of heating such a house, 
especially as this is an important feature in connec- 
tion with the work. A suitable boiler, of which there 
are many styles from which to select and which need 
not cost more than from thirty-five to forty dollars, 
may be placed on a level with the bottom of the walk, 
in one corner of the house, preferably at the north 
end. The arrangement of the heating pipes is simple. 
A one and one-half inch pipe is run out from the 
top of the boiler and carried along the roof to the 
far end of the house, allowing a drop of about one 
inch in every ten feet; that is, the end of the pipe 
at the far end of a sixty foot house would be six 
inches lower than where it starts from the upright 
pipe leading from the boiler. Here proper fittings 



238 VIOLET GROWING FOR BEGINNERS. 

are put on and four one and one-quarter inch pipes 
are connected with the first one run out. Two of 
these pipes are brought back to the boiler along 
the east wall and two along the west, allowing the 
same fall as for the one and one-half inch pipe. At 
the north end the four return pipes are all brought 
into the bottom of the boiler by proper connections, 
and the job is complete. In order to keep the boiler 
and pipe at all times filled with water and to allow 
for the expansion it is necessary to add an expansion 
tank to the heating system. This may be attached 
directly over the boiler and should be slightly higher 
than the highest point on the flow pipe. As soon as 
the water warms, after the fire is started, it flows 
through the one and one-half inch pipe and back 
through the four smaller pipes at the sides, giving 
out its genial heat all the time. Practically the same 
system is followed as in any ordinary range boiler 
where the hot water comes out from the top of the 
water back, flows into the boiler and the cold water 
flows into the bottom. The illustrations already 
given in previous pages of this work will enable any 
mechanic to construct this simple device. 

The profits from such work are always difficult 
to estimate, as has been pointed out, there being 
many conditions which have to be considered. There 
is no reason, however, why with proper care the 
results the first year should not be sufficient to cover 
all expenses incurred in the building of a house 



PROFITS FOR BEGINNERS. 239 

sufficient for one thousand plants, the purchase of 
stock, fuel, etc., or in round numbers from two 
hundred and seventy-five to three hundred dollars. 
After managing a house of this kind for two or three 
years successfully the experience gained will war- 
rant the building of others until with proper care 
and judicious management the yearly income from 
one's own labor may be made to reach a very 
satisfactory figure. 



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